New Reviews: February 7, 2003
Reviews by Matthew J. Forss
La Bodega Lounge
Various Artists
Ark 21/Mondo Melodia
DJ’s Mauro B and M.O.A.M. bring us Arabic music remixes from
some of the best musicians in world music. Some of the artists sampled
include Angham, Hani Shaker, Samira Saeed, Hesham Abbas and Mohammed
Mounir. Each track contains traditional Arabic instrumentation and
vocals with jazzy and contemporary rhythms and beats. La Bodega
Lounge is perfect for any contemporary world music listener.
Yusa
Yusa
Tumi Music
Yusa is a musician from Cuba that plays the bass, Cuban tres guitar and piano.
Yusa showcases her vocal and instrumental abilities on her new self-titled
album. Each track comprises of traditional Latin musical elements in a
purely contemporary Cuban context. Without a doubt, the elements of
jazz and rock form a foundation for the contemporary Cuban music.
Fans of female vocal music, Latin jazz and Cuban music should obtain
Yusa today.
Respublika
The Ukrainians
Omnium
Hailing from the Ukraine, The Ukrainians have constructed songs of
politics, rebelliousness, joy, freedom and celebration on their
latest recording, Respublika. However, they do not perform your
typical light folk music. Respublika features fast-paced Western
rock songs steeped in European/Russia tradition. Fans of folk and
punk rock music should definitely acquire Respublika.
Matthew J. Forss is currently a full-time student at Lakeland College-Sheboygan,
Wisconsin. He is majoring in Biology and German Language/Culture. Since 1998,
he has collected numerous musical instruments and CDs from around the world.
Also in 1998, he wrote a paper on Mongolian Ethnomusicology, titled:
How Does Music Play An Important Role In The Life And Culture Of Mongolia?
Currently, he has collected over 100 CDs that represent dozens of different
countries. His general interests include ethnomusicology journalism and
researching the traditional/contemporary ethnic music of various cultures
from around the world. His specific, geographic areas of study include the
traditional and popular music from Central Eurasia (especially Mongolia, Uzbekistan,
Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.) In November of 2000, he accepted the position of
writing world music CD reviews for this site.
