Episode 09
Episode 09 was originally posted on August 6, 2018.
Tracklisting:
01) "Orange" by Mourn.
From the 2018 album Sorpresa Familia.
Spain's Mourn delivers their third full-length at the tail end of a rough patch. Pitchfork explains:
Mourn’s third full-length, Sorpresa Familia, arrives at the tail end of a professional rough patch for the Catalonian indie quartet. A year before the release of 2016’s stark Ha, Ha, He., the band went public with allegations of mismanagement on the part of their Spanish label, Sones, which Mourn accused of non-payment of income and holding the released album “hostage.” Since then, both parties have parted ways. Sorpresa Familia (which translates to “Surprise Family” in Spanish) is the resulting chronicle of the group’s frustration and eventual resolution.
We're glad the band made it through that stretch because we all know what it's like to have bad times.
02) "Cross My Heart" by Melody's Echo Chamber.
From the 2018 album Bon Voyage.
Just as Mourn's newest album was the product of troubled times, the newest album from France's Melody's Echo Chamber (Melody Prochet) had a similarly troubled road. As Pitchfork explains:
The most distressing setback was a nearly fatal accident that led to a broken vertebra, a brain aneurysm, and an understandably canceled tour. (Prochet has underplayed the incident, allowing only that it “broke a life pattern that didn’t work for me.”)
The resulting album is entrancing indeed. NPR says: "Melody Prochet makes music for an enchanted planet."
03) "Fliperama" by Tom Zé.
From the 2000 album Brazil 5 - The Return of Tom Zé: The Hips of Tradition.
Tom Zé is one of Brazil's most influential musicans; a songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer who was very influential in the Tropicália movement of 1960s Brazil and has continued to make music within and beyond the genres he helped created. After a period of relative obscurity, Zé signed to David Byrne's influential global music label Luaka Bop. If we're not mistaken, this album, Brazil 5 - The Return of Tom Zé: The Hips of Tradition was Zé's first for the label and came at a time when Zé was considering giving up music to work in a gas station. We're glad he stuck with music.
04) "Amara Moussaoui" by Gabacho Maroc.
From the 2018 album Tawassol.
Wikipedia describes Gabacho Maroc as: "a Franco-Hispano-Moroccan group based in France and Spain, whose musical style merges Moroccan music , Gnawa influences , African music, and jazz . The group's website says:
By combining Western, Arabic and African influences and crossing cultural and musical boundaries, Gabacho Maroc have developed their own flair, using Afrojazz as the stock in a stew that's spiked with ingredients from Morocco, Africa and Gnawa culture.
We have extolled the virtues of the Rough Guide series before, and Gabacho Maroc was featured on the 2015: The Rough Guide to Best Arabic Music You've Never Heard and Tawassol is their second album.
05) "Relax" by Kassin.
From the 2018 album Relax.
Our second feature this episode from the wonderful Luaka Bop label! Kassin is also our second Brazilian on this very episode. Kassin's newest album reflects on the heartbreak of divorce. The Luaka Bop website explains:
A not-so funny thing happens when you get divorced: your friends ask for advice on how to deal with their own relationship struggles. Maybe that’s why Alexandre Kassin’s new album, Relax, has two songs about this incredible heartbreak.
The album was reportedly recorded in a period of Kassin's life when he was recovering from a bad divorce, and certainly, both the darkness and willed attempt to get to brighter territory seem to be there throughout.
We're sorry that Kassin had to go through a bad divorce to make this album. But we're thankful that the album exists.
06) "Curta Metragem" by Rosinha de Valenca.
From the 1966 album Ao Vivo.
We normally try to keep the music spread out across the world as much as possible within each episode, but we just couldn't get enough music from Brazil this week. Rosinha de Valenca was a Brazilian composer, arranger and musician. She was considered one of the best acoustic guitarists in Brazilian music and played a wide variety of styles.
Purchase the album on Amazon.
07) "Tou Bou Dou" by Les Chakachas.
From the 1959 album RCA 75.117: Eso Es El Amor / Canalla / Ma-Ma-Du / Tou Bou Dou.
Purchase Les Chakachas music on Amazon.
08) "Dulce Mal" by The Chamanas.
From the 2015 album Once Once.
We recently highlighted The Chamanas before their recent Phoenix performance. The band comes from the border between El Paso, Texas and Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua and, like many border towns, defies easy categorization.
As always, browse the worldwide map of artists we've featured so far on the Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow. To see artists from a certain episode, use the little toggle-window in the top left. This week’s episodes are represented by yellow map-points.