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Derek BeresAbout Derek Beres Derek Beres is the author of five books, including Global Beat Fusion: The History of the Future of Music, an insightful gaze into the new world mythology being created by global electronica, and the novel, Mysterious Distance . His photojournalism has appeared in dozens of magazines, focused on the international music scene. He is also a NY-based yoga instructor, as well as DJ and producer in EarthRise SoundSystem. Features
The Decline of Men: How the American Male Is Tuning Out, Giving Up, and Flipping Off His FutureIf men were a product, the marketplace is saying it’s outlived its shelf life. Author Guy Garcia considers how to reshape men to fit the modern world in The Decline of Men. [19 March 2009] Pathways to Creation: Exploring Sacred Music in Fes, MoroccoPopMatters goes to Morocco for the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music to honor and share the world’s great spiritual music traditions. At this 14th annual festival, Derek Beres would hear the indigenous sounds of Vietnam, Tunisia, Norway, Pakistan, Belgium, America, and much more. [21 July 2008] Columns
Bluegrass Grows in BrooklynThe Five Deadly Venoms are leading the charge of a thriving bluegrass scene in Brooklyn. [21 October 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) Brazilian Funk and Cuban Soul Heat Up the Northern ClimesA killer samba beat and an irresistible Cuban Sway: Brazil's futuristic Otto and Cuban expat Alex Cuba deliver soulful sounds. [22 September 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) Tuva Meets TechnologyFrom the ‘non-existent’ land of Siberia comes the long-existing sound of Tuvan drumming and throat singing. [26 August 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) Bob Holroyd Re:Turns“Writing music is often like assembling a collage, and I think this is why a lot of my tracks have a sort of cinematic quality to them,” says Holroyd. [15 July 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) For Summer Dancing in the StreetsSix spectacular world beat albums that will have you dancing through those sweet summer nights. [22 June 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) Novalima: Peru’s Hidden TreasureFriends and band mates since high school, these Peruvian electronistas all moved to different countries; Novalima was made via emails and zip files. [14 April 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) A Transcendental Evening at Alice Tully HallAfter the first piece, my friend leaned over and whispered that if you close your eyes, you are easily taken away. [24 March 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) Beyond the Bubble of the GrammysThe Grammys suffer from the same problem as the rest of the recording industry: thinking America defines culture. [11 February 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) Across the Universe, for the Sixth TimeThis year's globalFEST was punctuated by performances from Occidental Brothers Dance Band International, La Troba Kung-Fu, Kailash Kher, Watcha Clan, and others -- a brave journey through the world of sounds, guided by open minds and big hearts. [4 February 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) Visions of the WorldThree world-music documentaries deserving of your attention detail the unity of Islam through music, the convergence of South Asian folk with modern technologies, and the plight of Saharan desert dwellers. [20 January 2009] (more Global Beat Fusion) The Ubiquitousness of Ubiquity RecordsThere is no clear-cut definition of what Ubiquity Records produces, unless we go for universal terms like "good" and "dope". [1 December 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) Forty-Nine Hours at T-Dot Town’s Annual Small World Music FestivalToday's global music is an extension of the culture that has been emerging over the last century, when airplanes and vinyl recordings made social exchanges possible to an extent previously undreamed. [10 November 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) Fela! Here Comes the Black PresidentGreat art such as Fela! inspires us to make the choices we need to make, and not give up our responsibilities because it is easier to allow someone else to make decisions for us. [22 September 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) The Dusty Foot Philosopher Kicks Up AmericaK'Naan stood on stage, drum in hand, focused on the two instruments that comprise and compose the totality of African storytelling: the voice and the drum. [28 August 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) A Walk Through the MedinaIt's fascinating to think that a culture that produces such deep and soulful bass music could also contact its spirits via the shrieking, grating sounds of this flute, yet such is the nature of Moroccan music. [4 August 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) Ten Years Dancing on the HudsonFor the last decade, Turntables on the Hudson has held gatherings of positive music -- funk, hip-hop, soul, dance; African, Latin, and Balkan beats -- that thrive on human connection. [16 June 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) Three Nights in FranceBeres hits Paris and Bourges to take in the eclectic sounds of Transglobal Underground, Les Primitifs du Futur, Watcha Clan, and Fat Freddy's Drop, and gets pulled into the "sacred space" that solders the connection between sound and human. [12 May 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) Women of the (Music) WorldThere is little in this world as beautiful as the female voice. Sometimes it’s necessary to stop and remind ourselves of this. [14 April 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) Classical Egypt in AmericaBy shining the light on the vast, rich cultures of the Middle East, these musicians are bringing misconceptions and misunderstandings out of the darkness of the past, not to mention the dark corners of our present. [18 March 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) Devotion Through MusicGlobal spiritual traditions are being evolved by artists fusing the best of many worlds, electronic and traditional, into forms of devotion applicable to us all. [20 February 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) Bass Makes the World Go ‘RoundAs Hamsa Lila knows, the heart and soul of trance lies in the passionate intensity performed by its players. [24 January 2008] (more Global Beat Fusion) The Redistribution & Revival of RootsLike the roots of old and those of new, music flows stream-like from the hearts of these artists into an ocean of humanity. [19 December 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) Big Brass at the DiscoShantel has accomplished the most daunting task imaginable in this genre: making an accessible pop record with tubas, trumpets and dumbeks, and our response remains among the greatest of human pleasures: we dance. [21 November 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) Bachata: Generations Apart and TogetherBachata grew up in the barrio. Servants would turn trashcans and fences into instruments in their nighttime escapades, and the words would tune hearts to a frequency unheard during daytime hours. [15 October 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) Passport to the FutureOnce you get past the initial groove that Manu Chao lays, and become accustomed to his fast-paced nature, you recognize a passionate soul as devoted to music as he is to political and social justice. [24 September 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) New Ways to BreatheBreathing Under Water, a collaboration between sitarist Anoushka Shankar and tablist Karsh Kale, is not only where music is going, it's where it's at. [31 August 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) The Evolution of Africa and Hip-HopPharoahe Monch's new album, Desire, is a complete surround-sense experience, but it's also a reminder that as much as our technologies have improved, what we are communicating is not necessarily the most righteous of information. [6 August 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) JourneymenGypsy Caravan, a new documentary about a six-week tour featuring some of modernity's top Gypsy musicians, is an exceptional peek at life on the road, entwined with the history, and current state, of Gypsy culture. [9 July 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) The Evolution of VintageOne of the glaring paradoxes of technological evolution is its ability to reconnect us to history. And if we know anything about human nature, it's that as we step into the future, we always look back. [31 May 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) Emerging Ideas in Global Distribution: An Interview With Six Degrees’ Bob Duskis"If you don't embrace your buying base, you're going to go out of business." Beres talks with the electronica label's co-founder about digital distribution and independent music. [30 April 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) The Marleys and Mind ControlThe efforts of major corporations to disarm their consumers is a reminder that music used to be judged by how it made the listener feel, not how many times it was downloaded. [5 April 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) Rumi-nating on a New AxisThe Sufi poet formerly known as Mawlana Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Rumi is celebrating 800 years, and the entire spectrum of Persian culture is throwing a party. [27 February 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) Ali in the FamilyVieux Farka Touré continues his late father's musical legacy with a weathered voice, poetic passion, and a new debut album. [1 February 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) A World Shares the StageBeres inspects the 'major guitar and string theme' at this year's globalFEST event in New York, which will host music from Brazil, Cape Verde, Paris, and beyond. [12 January 2007] (more Global Beat Fusion) Desert TranceThese are the sort of flowers that bloom in the Sahara Desert: thumb pianos, distorted amps, muddy blues, and traditional chants. [8 December 2006] (more Global Beat Fusion) Reviews
James Baldwin’s Turkish Decade by Magdalena ZaborowskaZaborowska's dedication and passion for the subject of James Baldwin shines through; if only the dry touch of academia were far lighter. [18 February 2009] 
The World Is What It Is by Patrick FrenchIt may be difficult not to judge the man behind the Nobel-prize winning words, but this exploration of the author's life, career, and political stances will enthrall and outrage the reader. [5 February 2009] 
Hello, Everybody! by Anthony J. RudelIf you’re concerned with how media has developed and want to wager a guess about its future, this provides a textbook example of what to expect. [21 January 2009] 
South Park: The Cult of Cartman - RevelationsCartman shows us gaping holes in our cultural and individual patterns: elitism, fundamentalism, and overt and habitual ignorance. [17 December 2008] 
Death with Interruptions by Jose SaramagoSaramago’s novels are meditations to be experienced by those willing to journey down the labyrinthine mazes he constructs. [14 December 2008] 
Remix by Lawrence LessigThe author is not overly romantic; he does not believe that “free art” helps anyone, recognizing that file sharing should be legislated. [25 November 2008] 
Blindness by Jose SaramagoThe women have the strength to withstand the chaos; the men shirk at the responsibility, although they too eventually follow the women’s lead. [3 November 2008] 
It Still Moves by Amanda PetrusichPetrusich is not concerned with how many records are sold or what tactics artists use in the studio. Her approach is more intangible, hence more emotionally tactile. [30 October 2008] 
You Do Not Talk About Fight Club by Read Mercer Schuchardt (ed.)Using Sartre and superstring theory as a foundation, Vacker adds a voice to the continuation of Palahniuk’s theme, which deals, essentially, with the will to live -- and more importantly, how to live. [11 September 2008] 
The Court and the Cross by Frederick S. LaneThat evangelical Christian leader Rick Warren recently interviewed the US presidential candidates on national television is proof enough of Lane's chilling thesis. [5 September 2008] 
The Sleeping Giant Has Awoken eds. Jeffrey W. Robbins and Neal MageeReligion, like politics, is often in the hands of the translator, and when that translation is in the interest of the person instead of the prophecy, something is amiss. [8 August 2008] |
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