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ROBERT MILLIS 

Indian Talking Machine: 

78 RPM Record and Gramophone

 

Collecting on the Sub-Continent

SF 099CD 2CD/BOOK

Order through Forced Exposure 

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Robert Millis's Indian Talking Machine is a 244-page full-color hardcover book with two CDs containing 46 tracks from shellac discs spanning 1903 to 1949, which Millis collected in India and compiled for their first-ever CD release; the book contains over 300 photographs of 78rpm record collections, collectors, and ephemera, as well as detailed track notes and an essay. Limited-edition one-time pressing of 1000 copies. These photos are true "record porn" (that is, shellac 78rpm record porn) -- photographs of shelves groaning under the weight of unimaginable titles, beautiful label- and sleeve-designs from long-gone eras, wind-up talking machines, crammed antique shops, forgotten artists, and more, all of which somehow survived (often barely) India's archival obstacles -- dust, heat, floods, rebellion, partition, and war.Indian Talking Machine is the result of nearly a year in India photographing record collections, interviewing collectors, and visiting archives and record markets; a personal take on the vast worlds of Indian music and the intricacies of collecting sound. One of the earliest non-Western outposts of the "recording industry," India's first recordings were made in 1902. The country's music is as beautiful as it is complex, as subtle as it is profound, and as divine as it is simple; these recordings offer virtuoso instrumental performances, jaw-dropping vocal renditions, folk music, comedy recordings, and even animal impressions. The 78rpm records were transferred by Jonathan Ward (Excavated Shellac) and mastered by Grammy Award-winning engineer Michael Graves (Analog Africa, Dust-to-Digital, Hank Williams: The Garden Spot Programs, 1950 (2014), and more). Robert Millis is a founding member of Climax Golden Twins and AFCGT, a Fulbright Scholar, a solo artist, and a frequent contributor to the Sublime Frequencies label. He compiled and co-producedVictrola Favorites in 2007 (DTD 011CD), and created both the Burmese Crying Princess (2013) and Korean Scattered Melodies (2013) LPs for Sublime Frequencies, as well as the films This World Is Unreal Like a Snake in a Rope (SF 073DVD, 2012) and Phi Ta Khon: Ghosts of Isan (2006). In short, he knows what he is doing. You will not be disappointed. Includes performances by Professor Abdul Aziz Khan,Gauhar Jan, Mysore Chaudiah, Musiri Subramania Iyer,Bangalore Nagaratnam, the Vyas Brothers, Talim Hossein,Babu Aughor Nath Chuckerbutty, L.C. Bural, Veena Shanmuga Vadivoo, Professor Barkatullah Khan, and many more.

ROOTS WORLD REVIEW FOR RADIO VIETNAM SF095 CD

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Roots World review of SF095 CD Radio Vietnam.

Which brings us to the latest in Sublime Frequencies' confounding, mapless, aural travelogues into “the other.” Like their other radio series recordings, Radio Vietnam is a jarring stew. Here we have politically charged transistor snippets, news in English, ESL lessons, Vietnamese electric slide street guitar, lo-fi, synth drenched pop not unlike the grooves from neighboring Cambodia and Thailand, and hit-and-run hunks of ethnic minority music that somehow got caught up in the mix. The track titles, as usual, only enhance the confounding collage. “Morning Exercise in the Coded Ether,” for example, starts with digital beats, but switches abruptly to what sounds like a Martian pronouncing doom over a zither and feedback, only to be interrupted by a young Vietnamese woman speaking about something made esoteric by its lack of context before some of the most gorgeous electric guitar balladry ever copped from radio appears. This then is interrupted again by water chimes, incantations, socialist radio and perhaps what truly is an exercise regimen. And all of this takes about five minutes.

To go through this track by track seems as futile as trying to alleviate US poverty while Republicans have control of government. On and on this collection goes, perhaps useless to Vietnamese in country, but likely a joy to the few expats to hear it. But for the audience this is no doubt aimed at, it's another blunt missive fired at an already media-saturated west from a label whose early novelty has long been replaced by some seriously profound collections. Whether or not this CD-only release finds itself amongst them doesn't really matter. Oh, and Woody Guthrie even appears for a millisecond. 

- Bruce Miller

THE ATTIC REVIEW FOR BABA COMMANDANT & THE MANDINGO BAND: JUGUYA

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Burkinabé traditional music has continued to flourish and musical output remains quite diverse. In spite of this influx of popular styles, a few original talents have emerged, such as Koudbi Koala's Saaba, who perform traditional Mossi music from the region around Ouagadougou, the nation's capital. Popular traditional groups from Burkina Faso include balafon bands, percussion ensembles and others such as Farafina and Gabin Dabiré, who use elements of traditional Burkinabé music.

Burkinabé music tradition is rich and loaded, but how does it sound nowadays? It seems that the awe-inspiring people from Sublime Frequencies have managed to place this quest in a professional environment, resulting a great album of contemporary Afrobeat delivered by Burkibabé based musician Baba Commandant and his Mandingo Band. On his real name Mamadou Sanou, Baba is an original and eccentric character, well respected in the Burkinabé musical community.

After joining the Koule Dafourou troupe as a dancer, baba embarked later on his current musical direction as a singer, first in Dounia and then in the Afromandingo Band. Baba Commandant plays the ngoni, a stringed instrument that is an ancestor of the banjo, also the instrument of the Donso (the traditional hunters in this region of Burkina Faso and Mali). Members Simon Chenet and Issouf Diabaté are both on guitar solo duties, with Frenchman Chenet assigning an electric trance with his solos and Diabaté adding even more metal feel. 

Juguya is an eight tracks package, conveying essential rhythms, soulful, gritty, funky vibes and combining in a distinctive mode the heritage from Fela Kuti and Africa ‘70s, Moussa Doumbia (the James Brown of Mali) together with American rock and funk genres. This is modern DIY Afrobeat sound with the ngoni. 

Party mood activated! Don’t miss this.

Original review link here: 

http://the-attic.net/reviews/1451/baba-commandant-&-the-mandingo-band-_-juguya.html

STILL-SINGLE REVIEW FOR THAI POP SPECTACULAR: VARIOUS ARTISTS 2xLP — EXCLUSIVE RECORD STORE DAY RELEASE OUT TODAY APRIL 18th!

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STILL-SINGLE REVIEW FOR THAI POP 

SPECTACULAR: VARIOUS ARTISTS 2xLP

EXCLUSIVE 

RECORD STORE DAY RELEASE 

APRIL 18th!

Various Artists – Thai Pop Spectacular 2xLP
RECOMMENDED Thai Pop Spectacular collects 21 tracks of Southeast Asian pop nuttiness that was first released sometime in the 60s, 70s, or 80s, and pulled together by Alan Bishop and Mark Gergis in 2007. The CD has been sold out for years, but Record Store Day 2015 is as good a moment as any to reissue it on vinyl. As is often the case with Sublime Frequencies vinyl, the packaging (a gatefold with notes and a few head-scratch-inducing photos) is fabulous, and the pressing pretty decent too. The music ranges from dusk-of-psychedelia twang to passably deep funk to straight-up disco, and almost none of the vocals are in English; this music was intended for the home market, not tourists. The singing tends towards extravagant nasality, and if the translated song titles are to be believed, this is pretty nutty stuff. But Google Translate didn’t corroborate any of the translated titles, so it is possible that “Papaya Salad Merchant” and “Look Whose Underwear Is Showing” are really about something more prosaic. But for the non-Thai speakers out there, what does it matter? (http://www.sublimefrequencies.com)
(Bill Meyer)

Original Link at: http://still-single.tumblr.com/…/various-artists-thai-pop-s…

** SPECTRUM CULTURE REVIEW FOR JUGUYA **

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Baba Commandant 

& the Mandingo Band: Juguya

4 / 5

The names themselves are exotic: Ouagadougou, the Burkina Faso capital with a thriving underground music scene; the ngoni, a stringed instrument that is an ancestor of the banjo; “Ntijiguimorola,” a song as funky as its title. The Sublime Frequencies label releases music from faraway places with faraway names, and that faraway mood is a big part of the label’s draw. But one of the label’s most recent releases does not offer their usual field recordings with birds competing for sound space or vintage pop records recorded under compromised circumstances and pressed on bad vinyl. Juguya, the new album by Baba Commandant and the Mandingo Band, is a professional studio recording with strong production values that blend traditional Mandingue music and electric instruments for an intensely funky Afrobeat sound.

Commandant was born Sanou Mamadou in Bobo-Dioulasso, which, after the capital, is the second largest city in Burkina Faso. Mamadou’s stage name suits a commanding musical leader, and his booming voice dominates the album, his dreads and menacing look a compelling visual signature for the music. But is he a figurehead? In a promotional video for the funky title track “Juguya,” you see Mamadou performing the long-necked, six-string ngoni, which adds a delicate texture to the solid rhythm section. Yet the music is dominated by another sound, its grooves breaking out not just with voices but with electric guitar. Simon Chenet and Issouf Diabaté split guitar solo duties on the album’s eight tracks. Frenchman Chenet achieves an electric trance with his solos, while the Burkinabé Diabaté is the more metal of the two. Yes, metal. This smoldering blend of traditional and modern African music sounds a lot like Fela Kuti cranking it up to 11.

“Tilé” opens the album with a funky guitar line before horns and call-and response chants come in over the simmering groove. This is a more condensed Afrobeat than Fela’s, topping out at six minutes instead of Fela’s typical half-hour pulse. I can only imagine how these songs expand in concert, developing into deep trances and even more incantatory solos.

Diabaté pushes “Folon” along with sludgy metal riffs, while the amps get turned down for “Siguisso,” which is the album’s most traditional-sounding track. Still, Mamadou’s booming voice makes it an intense piece. “Wasso” breaks out into a blistering guitar solo from Chenet, its rhythms shifting from sheets of sound to sharp, echoing wails and dropping out into an even more heavily reverbed drum and bass section that comes off like Afrobeat dub.

Juguya is a well-paced groove album, its rhythms based in Afrobeat but taking survey of American rock and funk genres and laying electric waste to them. The music is made of raw materials carefully mixed for sonic effect, like the rippling guitar figure that comes and goes on “Wasso.” French producer Camille Louvel, a champion of hip-hop and other musicians in Burkina Faso, worked on this album’s rich, modern mix with Colin Thevenin and Sublime Frequencies co-founder Hisham Mayet. The production elevates their dense sound without making it slick. If you ever wondered what the music of Konono No. 1 and other Congotronics artists might sound without the lo-fi trappings, get this album.

Original link at: http://spectrumculture.com/…/baba-commandant-the-mandingo-…/

RECORD STORE DAY RELEASE! THAI POP SPECTACULAR 2LP 1st time on vinyl!

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RECORD STORE DAY RELEASE!

THAI POP SPECTACULAR 2LP

1st time on vinyl

Double LP gate-fold heavyweight Stoughton jacket, limited to 1000 copies

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL STORE on RSD. April 18th, 2015

"...The artists featured on Thai Pop Spectacular range from modest players of their time to major stars. The collection includes one of the earliest tracks from Pumpuang Duangjan (dubbed "the queen of luk thung"), who brought that style into popular music to stay. Also featured is the "shadow music" string sounds of Johnny Guitar, legendary comedian Sangthong Seesai, two classic tracks from Thai films, blazing examples of Bangkok disco from the 1970s, and the most outrageous version of "The Night Chicago Died" you'll ever encounter. Thick horn sections, wah-wah guitars, tight drums, and funky organs round out this superb collection, which proves beyond a doubt that the Thai were a completely unique and powerful force during the global popular music explosion of the 1960s, '70s, '80s. Gorgeous double-LP heavy gatefold vinyl release of the long out-of-print CD originally compiled by Alan Bishop and Mark Gergis in 2007.

https://soundcloud.com/earnest…/mae-kha-som-tum-papaya-salad

Songlines Magazine #107, April/May, 2015: 4 Star Review for Vodoun Gods on the Slave Coast dvd

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A 4 star review of Hisham Mayet's film Vodoun Gods on the Slave Coast on SUBLIME FREQUENCIES, written by Nigel Williamson in Songlines Magazine #107, April/May, 2015.

A quote:

"A visual field recording of Benin's voodoo culture"

Sublime Frequencies is distributed in the Benelux by Xango Music, and available at www.xangomusic.com 

Djolo Cultures d' Afrique Review For Baba Commandant

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Original link can be found here: http://djolo.net/baba-commandant-le-punk-noir-du-burkina-faso/

Baba Commandant, le punk noir du Burkina Faso

21/03/2015 par Aodren

Je me souviens une fois avoir lu une critique reprochant l’ambiance « pirate » et la dangerosité d’un petit maquis à Bamako, dans un guide touristique (à bien y penser et vu l’impertinence du commentaire ça devait être le guide du routard) ; et bien l’écoute de cet album de Baba Commandant m’a rappelé l’ambiance « pirate » de ce bar, un petit endroit sombre, ou l’on peut boire une bière Castel mal déglacée, en écoutant le son d’une guitare distordue crachée par un vieil ampli grésillant.

C’est dans ce décor, avec son kamélé n’goni à la main (instrument à cordes, proche de la kora, typique du Mali et du Burkina Faso) et son look de punk dozo (confréries de chasseur anciennes) un peu barré, que le burkinabéBaba Commandant, vient livrer son nouvel album Juguya ; d’ailleurs à le voir, on pourrait penser qu’il s’agit d’un de ces éternels mauvais musiciens qui tenterait vaguement de se raccrocher à un semblant de patrimoine culturel…. grosse erreur !!

Baba Commandant fait exploser le patrimoine culturel de son pays, comme aucun musicien burkinabé avant lui, ou presque. Et si l’on retrouve les sonorités traditionnelles mandingues, l’artiste originaire de Bobo Dioulasso (ville à la frontière malienne), n’hésite pas à aller emprunter du côté de l’afrobeat (avec des sections cuivres remarquables, assurées par son groupe le Mandinguo Band), mais aussi du rock, du punk, du hip-hop, et même du dub.

L’image de punk du Baba Commandant, Mamadou Sanou de son vrai nom, n’est pas née aujourd’hui ; il faut dire qu’il n’est pas un de ces jeunes premiers pris au berceau sous l’aile d’une maison de disque international, son parcours artistique a débuté en 81 comme danseur, puis petit à petit, au rythme des cabarets et des balani, et au côté de grand nom de la musique ouest-africaine (notamment le burkinabé Victor Démé), Commandant Baba s’est forgé une solide réputation. Aujourd’hui, son album Juguya, paru sur l’excellent label Sublime Frequencies, lui apporte une visibilité, et une reconnaissance internationale.

Sur Juguya, vous retrouverez 8 titres, où se s’entremêlent avec harmonie, les notes cristallines des kora et ngoni, l’énergie brute des guitares saturées, la transe des rythmes de balafon, et bien sûr le chant âpre et puissant de Baba Commandant.

Si vous avez apprécié le contenu de cet article sur Baba Commandant, n’hésitez pas à visiter notre page facebook et a y réagir, et pourquoi pas même nous encourager d’une petite mention « j’aime ».

Radio Vietnam CD: Dusty Groove Review

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Original link at:

https://www.dustygroove.com/item/737532

Radio Vietnam CD SF095 

A very cool set that returns to the earliest style of the Sublime Frequencies label – those 90s releases that often had the company grabbing global sounds out of the ether, then committing them to tape! The set here is exactly what's promised by the title – music from the radio in Vietnam – put together at a level that's extremely thoughtful and a lot more compelling than just flipping the dial in Southeast Asia! Each track is kind of a different pastiche of songs and spoken bits – assembled in a way that creates a certain flavor, and really makes a new sort of music out of these invisible sounds from the air. Titles include "Home Village Identity Event", "Induction Temperature", "Hit Zones", "Morning Exercise In The Coded Ether", "Message To The Age Of Twenty", and "America Lost The Vietnam War". © 1996-2015, Dusty Groove, Inc.

BOMB Magazine — Artists in Conversation: Olivia Wyatt by Will Oldham

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Olivia Wyatt

by Will Oldham

Sea-gypsies, Vodou, and ethnographic documentary.

LINK: Link to complete Bomb piece here

Still from Sailing a Sinking Sea, 2015. Directed by Olivia Wyatt. Image courtesy of the artist.