Yeule Makes Artful Glitchpop for the AI Era on ‘Softscars’
In weird ways, Yeule’s softscars works as a satisfying slice of artful pop for the Anthropocene that oozes catastrophe and captures a real cultural moment.
Adriane Pontecorvo
Adriane Pontecorvo is a native San Franciscan with a penchant for global beats. She is a music programmer for community radio station WFHB and studies ethnomusicology at Indiana University.
Zzzahara’s ‘Tender’ Is Exactly That, Plus Irresistible Hooks
Zzzahara’s Tender is poignant and sincere above all else but is also a fantastic and sonically relevant collection of pop rock with no time to waste.
Soprano a Viola Question Urban/Rural Dichotomies with ‘Onde Está o Jeca?’
On Onde Está o Jeca?, Brazil’s Soprano a Viola blur the boundaries between rural and urban popular music genres to question the stereotypes therein.
‘The Resonance Between’ Is More Than the Sum of Its Intercultural Parts
Alam Khan’s The Resonance Between employs techniques from Hindustani and European art music traditions, but it’s about more than just fusion.
Jazz Pianist Alfredo Rodríguez Thrives in Brighter Hues on ‘Coral Way’
Alfredo Rodríguez’s Coral Way radiates positive energy without relying on good vibes, a show of skill and passion that pushes his career further forward.
Hannu Saha & Pakasteet Take Finnish Folk to an Electric Future
A tremendous combination of old and new, Hannu Saha & Pakasteet’s Taas kerran, äkkiä should inspire artists looking to take long-held tradition into new spaces.
Hamza El Din’s Sparse, Sublime ‘Al Oud’ Is Reissued
The musical language of Al Oud joins concepts of Nubia and Arabia to express the intersections in which Hamza El Din lived.
Flow Is Key to Ekiti Sound’s Masterfully Eclectic ‘Drum Money’
Ekiti Sound’s Drum Money highlights seamless connections between London and Lagos, vintage and contemporary, acoustic folk and electric funk.
Sheila Chandra’s Breathtaking Vocal Experiments Are Immortalized in Reissues
At her most triumphant, Sheila Chandra pushed her voice into physical and affective spaces, nothing short of wondrous, exceeding the boundaries of pop and art music.
Eliades Ochoa Blends Rural Past, Cosmopolitan Present on ‘Guajiro’
Eliades Ochoa’s Guajiro shows an understanding of musical roots. It feels fresh, endowed with a collaborative spirit that makes for something wonderfully new.
Tinariwen Take an Intriguing Outlaw Country Turn on ‘Amatssou’
Tinariwen link Nashville and North Africa on Amatssou in ways well suited to a definition of outlaw country that includes their rebellious rock.
Baaba Maal Makes a Refreshing Electropop Return with ‘Being’
Worldbeat master Baaba Maal’s musical homecoming on Being is not myopic or static but embraces motion through space, time, and sound.