New Music for March
WCL librarians review some new music titles recently added to our catalogue.
Musique originale de films. Volume 2 - Ahmed Malek
Mark says: The second collection of Algeria's Ahmed Malek soundtrack music from Habibi Funk, following on from 2016's Musique originale de films. Malek, who passed away in 2008, was an acclaimed Algeria composer, conducted the "Algerian Television Orchestra“ for many decades, and wrote the music for dozens of movies, television shows and documentaries, his music becoming the defining sound for a generation of Algerians. A sinuous blend of genres from Jazz to western funk to Algerian folk populate the deep cuts and unreleased material in this volume.
Neil says: If you are looking for something that is strangely familiar yet totally unique then Dorothy Ashby’s Afro-harping should fit the bill. Originally released in 1968 this jazz funk album by jazz harpist Dorothy Ashby uses the harp as the lead instrument, which is unusual in itself and even more so in the jazz world. There’s a slick Latin influenced rhythmic background to the tracks, with lots of soft lush orchestration. It’s a cool, chilled release with a lounge vibe, as well as a 60’s genre twisting experimental side to the music. One sixties reviewer described it as “one of the grooviest records ever” and that description still aptly fits.
Opeth – The Last Will and Testament
Sam says: Long established as a household name in the realm of progressive rock and metal, Opeth have enjoyed an illustrious and prolific career spanning several phases and decades. Initially becoming legendary as a death metal band with strong prog tendencies, they repositioned themselves in the 2010s by shedding their extreme metal elements instead focusing on a more classic 70s-esque progressive rock sound. The Last Will and Testament is their fourteenth album overall and shows them coming full-circle, once again embracing harder-edged metal stylings. Particularly worthy of note is frontman Mikael Akerfeldt’s use of death-metal style growled vocals, which has been completely absent from Opeth’s music since Watershed from 2008. In saying this, The Last Will and Testament does not feel like a re-tread of the past, with the band continuing to experiment and push forward with new and unique compositional ideas. An essential addition to one of the most noteworthy discographies in modern progressive music.
Mark says: Physical release of the acclaimed album from Cindy Lee, the project of Canadian musician Patrick Flegel. Released in late 2024 as a YT stream and digital download the album soon achieved cult status, with Pitchfork ranking it best album of 2024 and the third best album of the first half of the 2020s. Released in Feb on CD & Vinyl, the sprawling 32 track opus is an epic low-fi mixtape of styles and sounds, an unlikely fusing of Brill Building & the Velvet Underground. At over 2 hours, it comes across like a journey through the history of rock music itself, like finding an old jukebox in a diner, full of songs that are striking familiar, yet strangely new at the same time.
Eno: the official soundtrack to the generative film ENO
Neil says: The music visionary Brian Eno has often been at the cutting edge of technology and the recent documentary portrait of the artist by director Gary Hustwit perfectly exemplifies this approach. It uses generative software to create a film that is different every time it is shown. The accompanying soundtrack is an exquisite anthology that covers his 50 year plus career. It is a wide and accurate summation of his work, but by necessity is only a snapshot of his output. An ideal starting point or reminder of how diverse a creative force he is.
Chrystabell – Cellophane Memories
Sam says: Chrystabell has enjoyed a prolific music career over the past two-and-a-half decades, having become particularly well-known for her collaborations with legendary arthouse film director David Lynch. Cellophane Memories stands as the third collaborative album between the pair and is particularly worthy of note as the final musical project Lynch was involved with prior to his passing in January. As can be typically expected from such noteworthy experimental creative minds, the music here is deeply otherworldly and dreamlike, providing an atmosphere that is as abstract as it is ethereal. Chrystabell’s enigmatic layered vocals are the clear point of focus across the album, however the spirit of David Lynch also breathes deeply within the music and as such fits as an appropriate swansong for one of the most powerfully creative minds of our time.
Mark says: A compilation of Congolese rumba from 1969 to 1982, from Analog Africa, the Frankfurt-based crate digger label. Curated from two journeys to Kinshasa and one to Brazzaville from around 2000 songs and boiled down to 14, this compilation aims to showcase the many facets of the funky, hypnotic and schizophrenic tunes emanating from the two Congolese capitals nestled on the banks of the Congo River. Super fun, music with plenty of horns, sinuous guitar lines, funky rhythms and seductive pulsating vocals, drawing influence from James Brown's Zaïre 74 concert.
Neil says: When the musician producer Sophie died tragically in 2021, they had released only one album. The 2018 pioneering hyper-pop masterpiece Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides, an album which at the time was nominated for a Grammy. The album has subsequently only grown in stature influence and reputation paving the way for a whole new genre and wave of artists. Sophie was working on the follow up album when they passed, and the tracks were sadly never completed, so this posthumous album release is hard to quantify. It has some great tracks but lacks the radical experimental edge that was a trademark of Sophie’s work. It is a bittersweet tantalising glimpse of what might have been, difficult to pin down, and an unusually safe statement from one of the 21st century’s great risk-takers.
Sam says: Kali Malone is a Stockholm-based American composer and organist, who is known for her unique tuning systems for both digital and analogue synthesis in combination with acoustic instrumentation. All Life Long is her sixth full-length release and shows her eschewing the electroacoustic and synthetic aspects of previous releases, instead focusing directly on the use of pipe organ, choir and brass instrumentation. The utilisation of these more traditional elements within Malone’s typically long-form drone-based compositions in turn create a sombre and devotional atmosphere. Despite this, Malone opines that ‘This is not music of praise, or of spiritual revelation, but it is an artistic enactment of translating the indescribable’. Sitting at close to eighty minutes, All Life Long is a deeply meditative work that feels simultaneously minimal and expansive.
Mark says: Debut solo album from Dora Morelenbaum, a member of the Latin Grammy winning group Bala Desejo. Super catchy Brazilian MBP that melds pop, soul, Jazz, disco, Tropicalia & R&B into a sultry mix of assured vocals and stand-out arrangements. Recommended to any fan of Brazilian music, and sure to be a critical cross-over success.
Dance of love - Tucker Zimmerman
Neil says: Tucker Zimmerman released his first album in 1969 called simply Ten Songs it was produced by the legendary Tony Visconti and David Bowie described it as one of his favourite albums. Move on fifty-five years with a lot of water under the bridge, Tucker has just released his eleventh album. The album wouldn’t have happened at all without the efforts of neo-folk group Big Thief who tempted Tucker out of long seclusive retirement in Belgium. It is useful to know something of his past to understand this understated quiet and gentle work. It's a deeply felt, mega laid-back country folk album, warm and welcoming, intimate and nuanced and encompassing a lifetime of living.
Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere
Sam says: Hailing from Denver, Colorado, Blood Incantation have spent the past decade-plus developing a highly eclectic and exciting sound. While their music is firmly rooted in death-metal, they have worked to incorporate elements of space-rock and kosmiche music throughout their career to great effect. While it is not uncommon for more progressive-minded death-metal bands to feature a diverse set of musical stylings, Blood Incantation have always managed to do so in a way that feels genuinely compelling and fully conceptualised on all levels. With their previous album Timewave Zero, they completely went off the deep end, completely abandoning their usual metal stylings in favour of a completely ambient sound. New album Absolute Elsewhere shows them reclaiming their death-metal sound while retaining a heavy dose of the aforementioned ambient flourishes, even enlisting current members of Tangerine Dream as guests on the record. All in all, Absolute Elsewhere is a truly kaleidoscopic musical journey that will undoubtedly be remembered as a cornerstone of progressive death metal.
Mark says: The debut album from this classically trained US singer-songwriter. Multi-layered, swelling chamber pop, full of lush arrangements and melodies, that manage to be just slightly skittery and off kilter, merge with some striking, engaging vocals. Lots happening from 80s stylings to 2010s synthy pop, to Kate Bush & Mitski influences. A confident debut from a artist on the rise.
BaBa ZuLa - Istanbul sokaklari
Neil says: BaBa ZuLa formed in 1996 and took inspiration from the Turkish psychedelic scene of the late sixties. Since then, they’ve released twelve albums and worked with the likes of Dub mixer extraordinaire Mad professor and Can drummer Jaki Liebezeit. 'Istanbul sokaklari' is weird and wonderful, strange and very psychedelic album, but it’s also very rooted to place. There are field recordings of street life, trains and birds mixed in with the gritty, dubby sophisticated psychedelic music. The band also displays their deep connections to Turkish folk music. Their live gigs are rumoured to be wild transformative events. And from this release I can see where that reputation might come from.
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats – Nell’ Ora Blu
Sam says: English rockers Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats have been on the scene for around a decade and a half, proving themselves to be one of the most noteworthy names in stoner rock in the 21st century. Nell’ Ora Blu stands as their sixth album overall and shows them making stylistic and conceptual leaps from their well-established sound. More expansive and cinematic in scope than previous albums it's a tribute to Italian cinema, particularly the Poliziotteschi (crime) and Giallo (horror) styles, creating a soundtrack-esque musical journey across its eighty-minute runtime, even enlisting iconic actors Edwige Fenech and Franco Nero as special guests. Overall, Nell’ Ora Blu stands as an iconic landmark within an already legendary discography.
Endless rain - One True Pairing
Mark says: The second solo outing of Tom Fleming (Wild Beasts) under the moniker One True Pairing. His first solo album following the Wild Beats split, One True Pairing, was a low key mix of synth-pop & heartland rock, it's impact affected by personal issues & the pandemic. His return with 'Endless Rain', recorded in 2022 with Lankum producer John “Spud” Murphy, sees his rich, unique, voice dissect human frailties within a vulnerable singer-songwriter context, and a more autumnal folk style.
Sentir que no sabes - Mabe Fratti
Neil says: For another highly recommended genre bending release for the adventurous listener, we would point you in the direction of Guatemalan Avant Garde cellist Mabe Fratti’s fourth album 'Sentir que no sabes'. A complex multi- layered work that is melodic and also, in turns, abstract and austere. It is constructed from improvised electro-acoustic works, a spellbindingly original album that transcends easy compartmentalisation. The closest references I can think of are Laughing Stock period Talk Talk, or some of the later more experimental and ambient Radiohead pieces; but take these as only starting reference points .
Sam says: Coming out of Melbourne, Brown Spirits are an instrumental rock trio, with members performing drums, bass and shared guitars/keyboards to create a thick and hazy sound that feels much larger than the sum of its parts. Musically, the group incorporates elements of classic psychedelic and krautrock (think Can meets Cream meets Hawkwind) with a high-octane punk energy to create a sound that is simultaneously energetic and trippy. The rough and ready production gives the music a DIY garage-rock quality, with the tight and accomplished performances making for a compelling and expansive listen that is easy to get lost in.