Posted October 31st 2013
More world music for Brighton next year!
We hope you enjoyed our Tamikrest show last week as much as we did! It was great to have some Mali music in our mix and we’re excited to explore more world music artists in our 2014 shows. Get involved and let us know who you’d love Melting Vinyl to bring to Brighton!
This week we thought we’d share some artists from far flung shores that we’ve been enjoying lately with you. Let us know what you think!
Tal National
Straight from Niamey, Niger, Tal National are set to move from hometown hero status in their native landlocked, desert-dominated West African country to the global stage, thanks to a recent signing to FatCat Records and their debut tour outside Niger, started September 2013. Revered regionally for their mix of Saharan and West African sounds and for their intense guitar work and upbeat vibe, Tal National make striking music, despite a constant dearth of instruments and a complete lack of local studios. Their sound combines gritty electric sounds and layered, intriguing percussion including the talking drum. Tal National’s songs find a looping, trance-inducing quality (think desert blues) but with joy and vitality (think highlife or mbalax)
Watch: Tal National ‘Kaani’ – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8UOUI4OGG
Asgeir
In his native Iceland, Asgeir is something of an overnight success with the September release of his debut album ‘Dyrd í dauðathogn’ breaking all records to become Iceland’s fastest and biggest selling debut album by a home grown artist, outselling even Bjork and Sigur Ros. Playing at the Green Door Store for Melting Vinyl in December, this 20 year old prodigious musician is a must see for Bon Iver fans. Tickets available at www.ticketweb.co.uk/meltingvinyl
Watch: Asgeir ‘Going Home’ – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIeVKsqD2aA
Omar Souleyman
Omar Souleyman is a Syrian musical legend. Since 1994, he and his musicians have emerged as a staple of folk-pop throughout Syria, but until now they have remained little known outside of the country. To date, they have issued more than five-hundred studio- and live-recorded cassette albums. His most recent release, ‘Wenu, Wenu’ on Ribbon Music has brought him to a more global audience while Souleyman lives in exile, while his native Syria is wracked by civil war.
Born in rural Northeastern Syria, he began his musical career in 1994 with a small group of local collaborators that remain with him today. At breakneck speeds, shrill Syrian electronics play out like forbidden morse-code, but the moods swing from coarse and urgent to dirgy and contemplative in the rugged anthems that comprise Souleyman’s repertoire. Oud, reeds, baglama saz, accompanying vocals and percussion fill out the sound from track to track.
Watch: Omar Souleyman – ‘Warni Warni’ – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVlgMEFu1PI