SARATHY KORWAR レコード& CD

Review: Always a worldly traveller in his musical quests Brian D'Souza aka Auntie Flo has now teamed up with Sarathy Korwar, an accomplished US-based percussionist with Indian heritage. Their collaborative album Shruti Dances is described as 'an explorative journey through South Asian tonality and diasporic identity', and it finds Korwar laying down dense tabla rhythms and drumming. D'Souza responds in kind with a varied pitch of sonic ingredients, largely synthesised but charged with a spiritual energy which feels perfectly matched to the captivating rhythms Korwar lays down. Boiled down to six tracks but hopefully with more to be unearthed in the future, it's a highly successful crossover which should appeal to everyone who loves outernational fusions.

Review: Les Abranis are a pioneering Algerian band known for having mixed up traditional Berber music with Western rock, folk, disco and funk. At the same time they never lost sight of their Kabyle heritage and as such really made a mark on the Maghrebi music scene all across the world from Algeria to France. This new collection Amazigh Freedom Rock 1973-1983 comes five years after Chenar le Blues/Avehri and is a deep dive into the band's discography. It spans everything from their early garage-rock experimentations to lush orchestrations and North African fusion gems from the 1980s.

Review: Indian percussionist and fusionist and Steve Reid foundation alumni Sarathy Korwar takes Ninja Tune on a trip through the Gujarat to his Sidi community homeland. Telling folklore tales and soundtracking the community's daily routines through traditional instrumentation, jazz, electronica and field recordings, the nine track narrative is a unique musical meeting point between east, west and strong twangs of east African instrumentation (such as wily horns on "Lost Parade") From the meditative ripples of "Eyes Closed" to the hazy sunrise of "Bismillah", this really is an exceptional and highly immersive body of work.