Musical accompaniments to kabuki theatre, by this pre-eminent Japanese chamber orchestra, with voice, shamisen lutes, fue flute, and kotsuzumi, otsuzumi and taiko drums.

Captivatingly austere, minimal, deconstructed, but deft and in a way intimate.

Jux alongside Adrian Sherwood, in 2005.
Thunderous… with a magnificent burning-horns dub masterminded by London Is The Place alumnus Harry Beckett.

A hypnotic, at times starkly dramatic meditation on the Arab Spring by the wonderful Tunisian oud player. Persistently framed by shimmering, glowing strings, the quartet marks the return of pianist Francois Couturier — from Le Pas Du Chat — alongside Klaus Gering on bass clarinet, and bassist Bjorn Meyer.

Festive folk music from the country’s Caribbean region, with four basic forms — the son, paseo, merengue and puya — played with three traditional instruments: the caja vallenata drum, wooden guacharaca scraper, and three-line, German-style button accordion. Here are some of its most celebrated performers, including Francisco ‘Pacho’ Rada, Nicolas ‘Colacho’ Mendoza and Victor Camarillo.

Easy-squeeze, rocking steady loveliness from 1968.

Gorgeous currulao from the Pacific coast of Colombia.

‘One of the all-time great records of improvised music from Europe. Period. Blisteringly hot. Uncompromisingly inventive. Staggeringly beautiful. And insanely rare. Originally issued in the mid ‘70s on FMP, featuring the legendary Schlippenbach Trio — with Evan Parker and Paul Lovens — joined by Peter Kowald.
‘Just the first track, an incredible twenty-plus-minutes burner called Range, is worth the price of admission — as punk rock as free music gets, it shows Parker’s spectacular capacity for high-octane blowing. Kowald adds a chewy, molasses bottom to the group, offsetting Lovens’ flinty metal, stick and skin and Schlippenbach’s hyper-focused intensity.
‘A stone cold classic of creative music. Remastered from original tapes.’
LP from Cien Fuegos.

Chocolate Mena leading three lineups — featuring Joe Henderson, Jerome Richardson, Alfredo Armenteros, and co — through Lalo Schifrin and Duke Pearson arrangements of core Latin and Jazz classics.

‘The Voice of the People’.