[Music] Mulatu Astatke and Black Jesus Experience – Cradle Of Humanity

There’s no one even close in the running of who is the King of Ethio-jazz. Until he passes on from this mortal coil, this title is Mulatu Astatke’s to keep.

This record is from May of 2016, and it features him pairing up with the Australian jazz collective Black Jesus Experience. This is the first I’ve heard of them, but they meld quite nicely with Mulatu’s vibraphone-based works.

[Music] Various Artists – Zanzibara / Volume Nº1


 
This is a mindblowing compilation of Tanzanian music when the country was not yet united (Zanzibar and Tanganyika were apart just before they came together in 1964). German ethnomusicologist Werner Graebner, producer of the Zanzibara series on Buda Musique, is responsible for putting this comp together for French label Ouch! Records. Give the whole album a deep listen. Much rumba, taraab and Swahilia popular music styles to be found here.

[Music] 20 Years of Southern Lord’s Dark and Heavy Art

https://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/v=2/album=2641990699/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/

The label’s roster has always featured a wide breadth of sonic explorers, from ambient artists through very heavy metal and post-metal acts to jazz fusion.

via 20 Years of Southern Lord’s Dark and Heavy Art — Bandcamp Daily

It’s amazing to think that this label has been around for 20 years, and I missed a good fifteen of those due to ignorance. May they have another happy 20.

[Music] Various Artists – Nostress Netlabel Anniversary Compilation Number 7: The Quantum Differences of Universal Sounds

This is one of the few times you won’t see me share a Bandcamp link for a release like this.  My colleague Andrey Kireyev let me know about this release, and I’m very much thankful he did!

Nostress Netlabel isn’t a one-trick-pony label.  The genres covered include Psychedelic, Post Rock, Avant-garde, Electronic and Electroacoustic music. The breadth of what they are covering is incredible, and the label is offering this compilation as a FLAC file release for free.

This is a great way to acquaint yourself with one of the best netlabels operating today.