fourth world
-
You know, sometimes you’ve got to step back and realize that there’s only so much thread to pull at. It’s not ideal, but it’s something I keep reminding myself of when I have to write about (or share an album) much like Sha’aban Yahya’s Return To Jogja.
-
You know, there’s something strangely meditative about filling out a Discogs credit list. I find it so, because you feel like you contributed to artists getting their proper accreditation and also you getting a fuller picture of how something got made. So, when I finished populating Maria Kawamura’s 「春の夢」 – サンクタス – (or Spring Dream…
-
The more I listen to Yang Xiao-lin’s 禧樂 (I Take You There), the more I’m impressed by how malleable folklore is. In the original liner notes, the words “elegant, pure, psychedelic, lively, remote and modern” are thrown as adjectives to describe this album. Myself, at first, I thought each word seemed to contradict the other…but…
-
When I went about curating my latest mix for LYL Radio, a phrase kept guiding me forward: “atmosphere as culture”. If any of you are like me, I imagine one of your passions might be exploring how much music can drive culture and vice versa. Some of that urge to simply “dig deeper” might lead…
-
It’s not often you recognize “genius” straight away, yet it’s not often you get to hear such precocious brilliance of the likes seen in Yukiyo Nakamura. From her debut in 1989 to her latest work, what could have turned out as a different kind of musician, blossomed into their own kind by finding her true…
-
“Now and again, we meet for tea. This is our universe: cups of tea. We have a beautiful cosmos, you and me.” It’s not often that we’re confronted with the secrets of life. It’s not often that we’re presented with such revelation (laced with equal parts comedy and profundity). A zen kōan said with a…
-
If you can imagine, imagine what it is to be a woman. For those already identifying as one, venture onwards. Then, compound that. Imagine yourself as a trombonist. It’s that choice: to pick up one of music’s longtime bit players — and actually do something meaningful with the instrument — that informs just how interesting…
-
Who knows where the time goes? Because, apparently, lately it’s me. Through some fated collusion of circumstance and consequence, both personal and external, I’ve spent most of my day tied to a phone, tied to things out of my control. With the holidays – at least in America – upon us, what precious moments I…
-
I’ll be one of the first to admit this: intriguing album designs draw me in. Even in the age of digital artwork, nothing quite says “listen to me” than a singular, creative, point of view. I mean, what else would explain how I stumbled upon Miguel Braga’s haunting nocturnal ambient jazz album, Ritual?
-
It’s such a cliche but it’s one that bears repeating: sometimes music just speaks to you. While listening to Chyi Yu’s wonderful covers album, 1987’s Stories, I discovered her interpretation of Don McLean’s little-remembered “Castles In The Air”. Myself in an autumnal-kind of mood, as Chyi sang every lyric, I listened ever closely, and piece…
ambient art pop art rock balearic brazilian electro-acoustic england environmental music experimental fourth world Funk fusion japan jazz minimalist mpb neo-folk neoclassical new age walearic