From mystical folk from the borderlands of Central and Eastern Europe to ambient and drone music that stretches out in time and resonates. Add percussive acrobatics, lively cartoon-style jazz, and a tribute to Turkish roots. Join me for a round-up of February’s most interesting albums.
MAGDA DROZD – Divided By Dusk (Präsens Editionen)
Magda Drozd founded the duo Sopraterra with Nicola Genovese. Their album “Seven Dances to Embrace the Hollow” explores trance, repetition, and the physical dimension of sound. “Divided by Dusk” mixes inspirations from Polish folklore and the pre-Christian traditions of Central and Eastern Europe with experiences from Japan. Drozd weaves Slavic mysticism with Japanese sensitivity to silence and space, helped by the shinobue bamboo flute. The music unfolds like a dark folk tale, using heavy violins, drones, field recordings, and the Lyra-8 synthesiser to create a dreamlike landscape. Folklore is not reconstructed here. Instead, it’s evoked like a memory or apparition – in a spiritual, ritualistic form.
Full text: Radio Centre for Folk Culture – Chocholi folk
KMRU – Kin (Editions Mego)
One of the fruits of the pandemic was “Peel” by Nairobi-based KMRU (Joseph Kamaru). On it, the artist uniquely combined everyday soundscapes into a monolithic, multi-layered ambient work. “Kin” refers, in a sense, to KMRU’s debut, but in a non-obvious way. The music is based on distortions and pulsating textures, dominated by synthesizers, noise, and overdrive. The result is sonic magma that induces a state of reverie and suspension. It explores rough, dense sounds that are reminiscent of Fennesz’s work (who appears on one of the tracks). Here, though, the sound is heavier and more apocalyptic.
Full text: MINT Magazine – 10 best albums for spring
ALTIN GÜN – Garip (Glitterbeat)
For over a decade, Altın Gün have been observing the legacy of Turkish psychedelia and Anatolian rock from the 1960s and 1970s – epitomised by Erkin Koray, Barış Manço and Selda Bağcan – with a sense of detachment and curiosity. “Garip” is a tribute to Neşet Ertaş – one of the most important figures in Turkish folk music, a master of the aşık tradition and a bağlama virtuoso. Altın Gün has recorded an album consisting entirely of reinterpretations of his compositions. Sonically, “Garip” remains firmly rooted in Anatolian scales and the characteristic melodies of Turkish folk, with traditional motifs alongside elaborate string arrangements, saxophone parts, and layers of synthesizers. Less psychedelia here, more drama and space – a wonderful experience.
Full article: MINT Magazine – The 10 best albums for spring
SHANE PARISH – Autechre Guitar (Palalia)
How does one translate the minimalist, sparse electronics of the British duo onto an acoustic guitar? Shane Parish, who played in the avant-rock band Ahleuchatistas and is a member of Bill Orcutt’s quartet, has already adapted works of Kraftwerk and Aphex Twin, among others, for the acoustic guitar. He has come through this new task with flying colours. Parish selected material from Autechre’s early albums and translated looped phrases into chords. The result is a peculiar, lyrical sound. The staccato, pulsating melodies gain warmth and a folk flavour. What sounded endless in the British band’s work becomes a musical mantra here. Parish shows there are infinite interpretations. His creativity knows no bounds.
Full text: MINT Magazine – 10 best albums for spring
BOOKER STARDRUM – Close-up on the Outside (We Jazz)
For almost a decade now, a shift towards solo performance has become increasingly apparent – delving into instruments previously explored in a band setting, contemplating them, a kind of study of their possibilities. And although Booker Stardrum defies simple categorisation, his album for We Jazz is a fascinating exploration of percussion’s sonic palette. It is pulsating yet delicate music, as if slightly muted, focused not on demonstrating the instrument’s capabilities but on rhythm and repetitive motifs (both in the opening track, the mantric ‘Telluric’, and the hypnotic ‘Third Nature’). The percussion is often complemented by electronics or wind instruments, which enhances the dreamlike, impressionistic feel of the whole.
WERNER DURAND & JOHN KRAUSBAUER – Black Seraphim (Moving Furniture)
Seven years ago, I wrote about Werner Durand’s brilliant album “Processions”, where the sound stretched to its limits, creating endless suites, drawing the listener in with its complex, intricate polyphony. Together with John Krausbauer, the German artist explores the possibilities of his own handmade wooden instruments, whilst the American explores the violin’s resonant tones. Long, endless pieces, electroacoustic textures, and varied tuning systems result in a harmonically rich suite, in which the grainy sound absorbs and draws you in with every passing minute. Music for contemplation, yet at the same time layered, raucous, and raw – giving it a unique dramatic quality.
VIC BANG – Oda (Mondoj)
Vic Bang’s “Oda” is an intimate, experimental tale about sound itself. The album is built from minute elements – samples, synthesizers, micro-melodies, and subtle rhythms – which slowly unfold and transform, creating a cohesive, focused whole. The music is delicate, intimate and somewhat melancholic, reminiscent of an “ode to small things” – tones, rhythms and resonances. The recordings feature both acoustic and electronic sounds, creating a dreamlike space between ambient, experimental electronica, and imagined folklore. “Oda” does not impose itself on the listener – rather, it slowly draws one into its microscopic world of sounds, where nuances, subtle shifts, and attentive listening become paramount.
Full text: The Quietus – Vic Bang
VARIOUS ARTISTS – Aman Aman – Greek Anatolian Laments(Mississippi Records)
A dig into the past – unique recordings from the early 20th century, documenting the poignant songs of people mourning their forced exile from their Anatolian homeland. ‘Aman aman’ means ‘help’ or ‘mercy’ – this is what the singers cry out on the restored 78 rpm records. These are not crystal-clear tracks or studio recordings, but songs full of longing, worn down by the passage of time. And that is not the point – within this simplicity lies a huge emotional charge, pulsating through these laments, where wailing voices are accompanied by violins, santuris, guitars, and ouds, evoking the culture of the Mediterranean basin in the early 20th century.
STEPHEN O’MALLEY – Spheres Collapser (XKatedral)
O’Malley has been known for several decades for his work with Sunn O))), where he stretches heavy drone-metal sounds out over time, manipulating noise, form, and the tone of guitars (literally) strapped to the walls of amplifiers. No less interesting are his solo explorations of monotonous, slowly resonating music, utilising similar tools but in a more subdued manner. A key role is played here by the massive organ in one of Lausanne’s churches, which lends itself to meditative, drone-based music with brighter tones. It is a sound that unfolds almost endlessly, with subtle shifts, resonating powerfully – inducing a trance, a kind of lethargy, or perhaps a subtle sense of elation.
TOMEKA REID – dance! skip! hop! (Out of Your Head)
I’ve been a fan of Tomeka Reid since her brilliant album with the trio Hear; I’m also a fan of Mary Halvorson (see the interview), as well as the young American jazz scene – perhaps not quite so free, but one that strongly explores elaborate arrangements for relatively simple line-ups, such as quartets or quintets. Here, under the cellist’s leadership, miracles happen – the music flows lightly and freely, yet one can sense the density of the composition and the variety of instrumental timbres, especially the superb counterpoint between the cello and guitar against the backdrop of the rhythm section. This is music true to its title – light, frivolous, full of surprises, at times almost cartoonish, yet at the same time erudite, brimming with vibrant sounds and ideas. Jazz that is lively, open, constantly exploring, with a sense of humour, lightness, and bravura.
