Bongo Joe Switzerland レコード& CD

Review: Collignon brings some real class to this new one on Bongo Joe Records. It is a tidy two-track 45rpm that is best described as psychedelic tropical. Opener 'Viemos De Longe' is a dense and busy mix of warped synth wobbles and steamy jungle effects, humid pads and mystic melodies that take you deep into overgrown flora where all manner of birds and frogs await with their weird and wonderful calls. Add in some psyched-out rock guitars and a sense of 60s spy theme funk and you have a marvellous cut. Flip it over for further sonic fun in the form of the magical 'Visita Noturna.'

Review: Ultra lo-fi stereo funkage from L'Eclair, the latest signage to Swiss label Rock This Town. 'Cruise Control' is a muddy and smoggy six-track instrumental disco-funk EP, with seven members laying down parts on wah-wah, space horn, and synth. It sounds as if a mega-talented disco troupe were performing in the next building, but they could only be heard through thick insulation or some kind of muffling foam. The tone is ultimately pleasing, blurry and cloudlike, as if this were disco beamed to us from heaven as opposed to the material world. The softest cuts, such as 'Safari In D', are our highlights.

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.