Cape Verde Traditional Music

Mendes Brothers Ramiro and João are a duo from Cape Verde, the nation of islands in the Atlantic 350 miles off the coast of Africa. They are accomplished musicians, and Ramiro has written songs for fellow celebrity performers, such as the legendary Cesária Évora.

Among the Mendes Brothers recordings shared on Jamendo is their 1995 album Bandera. In his Allmusic review of the album, Mark Romano writes:

Bandera is an old and sacred Cape Verdean music style that has been preserved for over 500 years. The music is performed exclusively during the saints' festivals. There are two or more drummers, an entourage of call-and-response chanters, and masked dancers. Bandera is set on a beautifully syncopated 3/4 rhythmic pattern with a very simple and repetitive melodic structure.

This is the first time that bandera was transposed from its traditional music format to contemporary expression. The brothers have interpreted this ancient music and have done it admirably. With updated technology they have brought this music to a wider audience. The tracks are deeply rooted in the traditional rock bed of West Africa but also swing with a thoroughly modern intensity. The semba/ coladera tracks combine Cape Verdean coladera dance rhythms with Angolan semba. The mixture results in extended fiery marathons, percussion-laden with riffing horns. This is Cape Verdean music at its finest, with plenty of percussion and bass accompanied by call-and-response vocals and some great chops on the horns. Highly recommended.

Official Website | Jamendo | myspace | Facebook | iTunes | last.fm | Amazon

Music License: © Creative Commons BY-SA
Artist Location: Cabo Verde (Cape Verde, officially the Republic of Cape Verde)

Carib and Afro-Pop From Soundway

On April 1st, 2013, Amazon UK will be showcasing the British-based Soundway Records with a free 14-track label sampler download featuring some of the label's best artists from Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America and beyond.

Soundway Records was formed in 2002 to celebrate and revive interest in music from Ghana and the Gold Coast. In the last 11 years, the label has expanded to release music from a number of artists from the tropical belt around the world.

Although initially a label that focused on re-releasing old material, Soundway are now releasing material from a carefully selected handful of contemporary recording artists. And the album covers on Soundway Records are noted for being wild!

"Simply put, England's Soundway label equals quality. The label is run by passionate people who do things the right way: every track on a Soundway compilation is meticulously re-mastered and I've never noticed a drop in quality on any of it's releases. The track selection on it's multi artist comps is nothing short of astounding"
-- Pitchfork

Note: Amazon freebies are now all done through the Amazon Cloud Player or mp3 downloader software.

license: all rights reserved



Two free tracks at Soundcloud

Venezulan Afrobeat

The 10+ member band Tragavenao Orquesta Afrobeat from Maracaibo, Venezuela creates an Afro-pop, Latin jazz, Afrobeat blend. Their four-song EP, Tragavenao, is available through last.fm and ReverbNation.


Facebook | SoundCloud | ReverbNation | last.fm

Iyadede

Rwanda (via Belgium) transplant Iyadede will have you dancing with her sincere pop. Her website seems to be down now, but her 2011 demo, a 2012 tune, and a track with Afrik Yambre are available at Bandcamp.

Weekend Sweet Sixteen

Advent Chamber Orchestra - 05-06 classical, baroque, chamber	US Army Brass Quintet - Encore! brass, classical, baroque, chamber	Anitek - Calm and Collect Volume 3 (among many others) hip hop, downtempo	Bubamara Brass Band - Bubamarija Kashtanizma Balkan brass
Umoja - Palago afro-pop, funk, highlife, African	Blake Fleming - Time's Up drum, percussion	MadMustangMix - mashups varied, remix, sampling	VA - Late '70s to Mid '80s Heroes '80s, varied
Advent Chamber Orchestra - Dec classical, baroque, chamber	Advent Chamber Orchestra - Nov classical, baroque, chamber	Ain Dreux Troyes Chartres (106 tracks of French music) varied, French	Cantonese Opera (help with the title?) opera, stage music, Chinese
Andrew Bisset - three compositions modern composition, modern classical	Netherland Dwarf - May the Piper (like the bunny!) toy music	Songs from a Random House - The 1986 Demo new wave	Soundeyet - On A Steady Diet of Hash, Bread, and Salt Greek rembetico

Weekend Sunshine

Here are five collections of free and legally shared tunes to bring sunshine to your weekend! There is something here for everyone and something for any occasion. Feast your ears!

FreeMusicArchive.org player:

• Click artist name for more from this artist.
• Click "i" or song title for license and song info.
• Click down arrow picture to download song.
• Click DOWNLOAD ALBUM to download all tracks at once in a zip.

MEU CORAÇÃO É BRASILEIRO

ABOUT: Brazilian flavors from old traditional folk songs to favela funk
TAGGED AS: funk carioca, favela funk, baile funk, pop, folk, brazil, afro-brazilian, brazilian

TOYLAND

ABOUT: Bouncy, boingy, squeaky, squirmy, twinkling, sparkling! Welcome to a wonderful world of toys, ear candy, and giggles brought to you by Thiaz Itch, El Zoologico, Gangpol & Mit, Cindy Sizer, Lawrence Power, The Bran Flakes, Christian Bjoerklund, René Vis, 8bit Betty, Valzi & Zinger, and Bubblyfish!
TAGGED AS: synth pop, novelty, pop, experimental pop, toyland, toys, chip music, children, childrens music

KAIRAKUDA: AFRICAN WATER

TAGGED AS: international, world, african, africa, north african

UPDATE 06/14/10: Just learned that Kairakuda has a second African mix that you might also enjoy.

MACEDONIA: THE HARMONIC EQUIVALENT OF RUN-ON SENTENCES...

ABOUT: "... made with a road trip mixtape aesthetic in mind, but it should work as well for office cubicle therapy. Be it hip-hop or minimal techno, be it quirky and upbeat click and glitch-laden electronics, from the smooth and introspective to the edgy and erratic"

JASON: INTERNATIONAL SOUNDS 2009

ABOUT: Argentina, Mali, Haiti, Eastern Europe, India, and performances on Transpacific Sound Paradise

Many more to come! Hopefully some by YOU.

Warm Orange

Australian label Patterns Community Sound Centre may not have a website any longer, but they have left a legacy through their recordings. This debut EP by Lagos Disco Machine is testimony. With thumb pianos, effects, and found sounds, the WARM ORANGE EP entertains your ears and brain with organic and electronic sound layers. Lagos Disco Machine is a misleading name, as only one selection is a dance track. In face, track three, "Lord Pear," sounds more like a tribal field recording. For clocking in at about 20 minutes, this EP takes your ears all over the place and back again. Enjoy it here at the FMA.

album license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives (aka Music Sharing) License

West African Bardic Tradition

In most West African nations, there exists an incredible tradition of oral historians. These bards are known in various languages as jelis, griots, djeli, jali, guevel, gawlo, and igiiw. They are historians, entertainers, advisors to nobility, genealogists, praise singers, messengers, and the keepers of cultural traditions. They keep their people's history alive by passing it through the generations in the form of music, dance, and recitations.

The craft is Jaliyaa, and jeli must have the abilities to perform every traditional song, some of which are more than 1,000 years old. Jeli must know details about local history, recite long stories, and be able to extemporize on current events. It is said that a library burns down with the passing of a jeli. These storytellers are the archivists of their people's traditions. Each jeli is the culmination of their lineage as the job is passed from parent to child, adding new works with each generation.

The Free Music Archive is host to a release of an international group featuring two young men born into the jeli caste, Jalikebba and Haruna of the Toubabs. The group Jalikebba Kuyateh and the Toubabs has released the self-titled album Jalikebba and the Toubabs which is now available for download at the Free Music Archive, a wonderful project from WFMU, the world's greatest radio station.



License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike License

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Tuesday's Dozen

Tuesday is a real good news day. Here you have a new set of 12 free and legal collections and CDs to get you through the work week! Eat up and be sure to spread the love by supporting these artists!

Jalikebba and the Toubabs Jalikebba Kuyateh performs on the kora at the Tanji Village Museum in his homeland of Gambia [folk, Africa]	Gepel Argentinan jazz combo shares their fantastic Moducué CD, showcasing popular Latin themes within traditional cool jazz (website) [jazz]	Jordan O'Connor Canadian bassist and film score composer offers his improvisational solo bass album Lebreton online [jazz, bass]
Dead Heart Bloom two gorgeous CDs of "music with the eclectic eccentricity of Beck and the dramatics of David Bowie" and you'll hear Nick Drake there, too [pop, acoustic, rock]	Hedgehog Brazilian electro artist, aka The Mechanical God, best known for his breakbeat work, shares lounge CD (blog, myspace) [downtempo, jazz, lounge, Brazil]	Plastique Noir fans of Bauhaus won't want to miss this goth Brazilian group on German netlabel afmusic (band's myspace) [gothic, post-punk, rock, industrial]
Ryan Hoyle the drummer for Collective Soul and many other artists shares works from his portfolio [pop, rock]	JazzCorner.com offers fantastic podcasts featuring and interviewing jazz legends and up-and-comers [jazz]	The Weird Weeds This Is Not What You Want EP, "took all of 30 seconds... to fully blow my mind" - Portland Mercury [experi, pop]
Mikseri Finland's answer to MP3.com, IUMA, Soundclick, etc.; pages translate with a click; cool, vast resource [varied]	Nichole and the Dreamcatchers 12-yr old Nichole and some adult friends offer up this bizarre and beautiful xmas CD [kids, odd, varied]	Pr1me shares his entire The Transformation: Perception Is Deception CD, preview tracks on myspace profile [soul, hip hop, rap]

Constructus - The Ziggurat

"A cyber fairytale from the mind of Waddy Jones, this unique package set includes hardcover 88 page graphic novel with soundtrack cd, plus a bonus black cd to DOWNLOAD.... They call it ‘boom bam’ - a futuristic blend of hiphop and electronica with hard-hitting beats, cutting-edge electronica, virtuoso scratch solos and the craziest rhymes you ever heard. And that's just the soundtrack to the story. hiphop where no man has gone before... FILE UNDER: far out, man!" - African Dope, the South African label [more info and to purchase]

UPDATE: Although this 2002 album is no longer shared at African Dope, you can still hear this album here. The chameleon Waddy Jones went on to be many more characters, including Max Normal, MaxNormal.TV, and then "Ninja" in parody group Die Antwoord.