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Charts December 13, 2015
No CMJ charts this week (they'll be on vacation until January 4, in fact). Taking their place are Global A Go-Go's top new releases of 2015; click through to see my reviews. Next week, I'll run down...
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Program December 16, 2015: Top Ten Compilations of 2015
This week, it's my annual tribute to the cratediggers of the world: the folks who unearth the forgotten, the obscure and in some cases the never-before-heard. And a shout out as well to the curators:...
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Charts December 20, 2015
Here are my last charts of the year. No CMJs until the first week of January, so in their place are my favorite compilations, reissues and historic recordings of 2015 (don't forget to click through if...
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Program December 30, 2015: Best of the Rest of 2015
Global A Go-Go closes the books on 2015 with another look at the year in review. This week, the focus is on individual songs: my favorite singles of the year, top tracks from albums that didn't quite...
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Charts January 3, 2016
WRIR's CMJ New World Top Ten1 BIO RITMO | "Oriza" [Single] | Peace And Rhythm2 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Senegal 70: Sonic Gems And Previously Unreleased Recordings From The 70's | Analog Africa3 BARRULE |...
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Adama Yalomba | Waati Sera
ARTIST: Adama YalombaTITLE: Waati SeraLABEL: Studio MaliAdama Yalomba is a 45 year old singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from Mali who’s best known for his work as a sideman with Rokia...
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TisDass | Yamedan
ARTIST: TisDassTITLE: YamedanLABEL: SahelsoundsDesert blues from the Sahara, also known as assouf music or simply la guitare, continues to grow, evolve and expand – TisDass is its latest iteration....
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Soul Sok Sega: Sega Sounds From Mauritius 1973-1979
ARTIST: various artistsTITLE: Soul Sok Sega: Sega Sounds From Mauritius 1973-1979LABEL: StrutSega is the most famous musical product of Mauritius, a small Indian Ocean island nation known for its...
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Dubioza Kolektiv | Happy Machine
ARTIST: Dubioza KolektivTITLE: Happy MachineLABEL: KoolarrowDubioza Kolektiv is a seven-piece rock band from Bosnia & Herzegovina whose sound incorporates elements of punk, metal, hip hop,...
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Divanhana | Zukva
ARTIST: DivanhanaTITLE: ZukvaLABEL: ARCDivanhana is a young band from Sarajevo that specializes in the urban folk music of ex-Yugoslavia. Much of their material is sevdalinka, “Bosnian blues,”...
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Program January 6, 2016
Let's get started in 2016 with some brand-new music, shall we? First up is the fabulous Bosnian punk-ska-Balkan brass band Dubioza Kolektiv (pictured above), whose new album will be released on...
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Charts January 10, 2016
WRIR's CMJ New World Top Ten1 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Soul Sok Sega: Sega Sounds From Mauritius 1973-1979 | Strut2 DUBIOZA KOLEKTIV | Happy Machine | Koolarrow3 DIVANHANA | Zukva | ARC4 TISDASS | Yamedan |...
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RAM | 6: Manman M Se Ginen
ARTIST: RAMTITLE: 6: Manman M Se GinenLABEL: self-releasedRAM is one of Haiti’s most popular and important bands. Founded in 1990 by half-Haitian American expat Richard A. Morse, the 13-piece band has...
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Baaba Maal | The Traveller
ARTIST: Baaba MaalTITLE: The TravellerLABEL: Palm / Marathon ArtistsBaaba Maal is one of the true international stars in African music. He’s hands-down the planet’s best-known speaker of the Pulaar...
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Cortijo | The Ansonia Years 1969-1971
ARTIST: CortijoTITLE: The Ansonia Years 1969-1971LABEL: VampisoulVolume 3 of Yannis Ruel’s Saoco project documenting Puerto Rican bomba and plena focuses on percussionist and bandleader Rafael Cortijo....
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Program January 13, 2016
Senegalese singer Baaba Maal, one of my all-time favorite artists, has a new album out (his eleventh). It's a collaboration with Johan Hugo of The Very Best, and I'll give it a spin on this week's...
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Charts January 17, 2016
Rafael Ferrer, "Cortijo Tres Veces," 2012WRIR's CMJ New World Top Ten1 CORTIJO | The Ansonia Years: 1969-1971 | Vampisoul2 RAM | 6: Manman M Se Ginen | self-released3 BAABA MAAL | The Traveler |...
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Program January 20, 2016
I've been listening to a lot of vintage South African music in recent months, most of it from the outstanding Electric Jive music blog, and much of it contributed to Electric Jive by Richmond-based...
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Luka Productions | Mali Kady
ARTIST: Luka ProductionsTITLE: Mali KadyLABEL: SahelsoundsSahelsounds is the record label run by “guerrilla ethno-musicologist” Christopher Kirkley; his objective is to release unrepresented music from...
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Charts January 24, 2016
WRIR's CMJ New World Top Ten1 LUKA PRODUCTIONS | Mali Kady | Sahelsounds2 BLACK MASALA | I Love You Madly | self-released3 DEBO BAND | Ere Gobez | FPE4 DUBIOZA KOLEKTIV | Happy Machine | Koolarrow5...
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