STACK NZ Mar #60

MUSIC

FEATURE

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WHEN THEWORLD COMESTOTOWN Graham Reid casts an ear over some of the artists coming to this year’s WOMAD

“Bombino” Moctar is another who works the desert blues sound, but his influences are as much Hendrix as the electric guitar of the region. His breakthrough 2013 album Nomad with producer Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys debuted at number one on the Billboard World Music album chart.Think Jimi dialled down into seductive trance music and you’re coming close. Not to be missed, especially if you’ve enjoyedTinariwen, Etran Finatawa and Tamikrest previously. The Gloaming (Ireland/USA) The Irish supergroup with legendary fiddlers from Afro Celt Sound System, as well as in- demand pianistThomas Bartlett (AKA Doveman) from NewYork. With a sound both ancient and new, embracing haunting traditional songs and rousing instrumental medleys,The Gloaming have been hailed internationally.Their self-titled album last year took unmistakably Irish music in captivatingly different directions. Lake Street Dive (USA) The breakthrough moment for these jazz-school graduates came when they sang a cover of the Jackson’s I WantYou Back on a local street for aYouTube clip.This quartet – who studied at Boston’s New England Conservatory – initially

wanted to make a kind of avant-garde country music, but that transformed into soul-inspired pop with cool choruses and a real feel for classic Motown.Their album Bad Self Portraits of last year might not be the best thing they ever do, but it’s a collection of addictive, repeat-play songs. Malawi Mouse Boys (Malawi) If they invite you for dinner, think twice and check out theYouTube clip which shows them at their day job, selling mice kebabs as takeaway food for passing truck drivers. But carry on watching because then they pick up battered and homemade instruments and sing sweet harmony spirituals in what might pass as goodtime pop, which can also sound uncannily similar to Polynesian music.Their album He is #1 was recorded in their own environment, so captures these authentic voices just as you want to hear them. Public Service Broadcasting (UK) EveryWOMAD has artists which make world music purists say ‘why?’ and doubtless this English duo will get that response.They mix live music with vocal samples before a backdrop of archival footage from old docos and films, and their 2013 debut album Inform – Educate – Entertain was one of the best of the year. It reflects on the British night mail trains, the stalwart public resolve during the London Blitz, an ode to the Spitfire fighter plane – and their new album The Race for Space focuses specifically on the excitement and drama of the great age of space exploration.You probably never thought you’d dance to a piece about Russian heroYuri Gagarin, but you will be. Sinead O’Connor (Ireland) Yes, the mainstream rock critics will be here for this act among all others and again another artist whose inclusion manyWOMAD regulars might question. But put your prejudice aside, because she’s here on the back of her best album in years, I’m Not Bossy, I’mThe Boss . O’Connor is also apparently on top form and her recent live

When it comes to music festivals, WOMAD –TheWorld of Music, Arts and Dance – covers more diverse musical and cultural territory than any other (and the food is always different and far better than your average fests). The annual event inTaranaki, this year between March 13-15, typically brings together big names, some half-familiar ones and artists you’ve never heard of. Often the latter provide the highpoints because they are so unexpected. Here’s a broad selection from the line-up, and relevant albums so you can do your homework. But remember, the ones we don’t mention might just be your favourite.That’sWOMAD for you. BalkanBeat Box (Israel/US) Out of Brooklyn viaTel Aviv, Balkan Beat Box emerged a decade ago as a force in NewYork’s underground with Mediterranean-inflected, globalised electronica.The cover of their 2012 album Give depicted a gun in profile, the barrel of which was a megaphone. “This is our most hardcore album so far,” explained founderTamir Muskat. “The songs and subjects are darker and more political.”There’s also piercing saxophone adding spice and exotic harmonies to the hard, Eastern-inspired rhythms; imagine a hip hop inclined, multi-cultural, clubland Clash if they’d formed in Brooklyn. Bombino (Niger)

World music – like pop, rock and hip hop – has its emerging stars, and this guy is one of them.Tuareg guitarist Omara

SINEAD O’CONNOR

MARCH 2015 JB Hi-Fi www.jbhifi.co.nz

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