Around The World Preview

5 January 2024

Last Week

Last week and the week before, I played tracks from 60 of the best albums (in my very tendentious view). This week I begin the mop-up of some of the best of the year that I missed (and forgot to add). After I published my list and began to read other people’s “Best Ofs”, I cringed slightly seeing some of those missed on my list.

In Songlines magazine I read “Our editors have chosen their Best Albums of 2023” and realised I had completely forgotten Laliboi & Spoek Mathambo’s Siyalapha (ouch!)

And I missed Sunny War's Anarchist Gospel (ooops!)

Here are two other lists which I wish I had read before publishing mine.

• Izvorišta 392: Best 20 albums of 2023 by EMIR FULURIJA

• Records Of The Year 2023 on Neil Kulkarni's Too Much Music

You can see running orders and listen to the playlists for last week and the week before, even lisen to the shows on Mixcloud at my blog davysims.com.

This Week

Music from: Argentina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, England, Ghana, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mongolia, Scotland, Senegal, Serbia, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Trinidad, USA, and Wales

Music by: Balimaya Project, Batsükh Dorj, Catrin Finch & Aoife Ní Bhríain, dadá joãozinho & JOCA, Fränder, Hrdza, Hugh Masekela & Siparia Deltones, Jethro Tull, Kataomoi, Lakvar, Laliboi & Spoek Mathambo, Las Lloronas, Lenhart Tapes, Luigi Cinque, Stefano Saletti & Urna Chahar-Tugchi, Maher Cissoko, Mon Laferte, Nani Vazana, Hicham Laaraari and Alice Hoolsema, OKAN, Onipa, Ramy Essam, Soema Montenegro, Sukhwinder Singh & Sapna Awasthi, Sunny War, and The Breath.

This Week’s Featured Album - Autopoiética by Mon Laferte

Mon Laferte - Autopoiética

First, let me state, “I’m a fan” and have been for some years. Mon Laferte’s new album Autopoiética was released in November. This is her 8^th if you discount her very first album released 2003 under the name Monserrat Bustamante. That was a very good Spanish pop/talent show/teen recording and was released under part of her real name, Norma Monserrat Bustamante Laferte.

It would be 8 years until Mon Laferte emerged with Desechable the first using the name Mon Laferte. Here, and for the next album, she was a rocker, and an alternative music maker. Reinvention is at the core of who she is. She does what David Bowie did, but differently. Her re-inventions include big voice torch songs, through latin jazz, dance and, with her 6th (or 7th to be pedantic) SEIS, a tour into Mexican country.

The new album is filled with experimentation and new ideas reflecting some of the transitions she has been through.

"Autopoiesis" is a word a word coined by the Chilean biologist Humberto Maturan, it's defined as "a being able to self-create or re-create itself".

Here’s an interview on Rolling Stone. How Mon Laferte Reinvented Herself On Her New Album ‘Autopoiética’ The Chilean artist talks how reinvention, reflection, and turning 40 impacted her ninth LP.

And the review on Pitchfork.

And as a small bonus, this is one of my favourite videos that she has made. A demonstration of the breadth of her artistic skills, and some of the rarely mentioned Mon Laferte humour.

Mon Laferte: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert

Also this week.

We begin with something new from the excellent Slovakian band Hrdza who have just released Čo mi Je, To mi Je.

When about five years ago they released a single called Stefan, they were fairly obscure outside Slovakia and region. Last time I looked at the video for the single on YouTube about a year after its release, Stefan had gained an impressive 3 million views. Today – 38 million views. I’ll be playing Nie Tvoja (Not Yours) first released as a single about a year ago.

Hrdza - Nie tvoja / Not Yours

A couple of months ago the Israeli-Dutch songwriter Nani Vazana , a musician who specialises in reviving Ladino songs, brought together Hicham Laaraari and Alice Hoolsema for a song melding Islamic prayer, Jewish prayer and Christian prayer.

Prayers for Peace

‘Prayers for Peace’, composed by Nani, was commissioned by Graceland Festival. Nani says “[It] is a statement of hope and a call for inner peace. Reminding that we are here for each other, even in times of war.

“This song isn’t a political statement or representing any religion in particular, it’s a reminder that it’s time for us to choose: Peace. Now. Together.” The song isn’t available commercially, but you can download a copy for free at Nani Vazana’ website.

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World Music Charts

In 2024, I plan to publish the two main charts representing World Musis in the first edition of the newsletter of each month.

WORLD MUSIC CHARTS EUROPE

Read, listen, shop and download Topten-colour-print at www.wmce.de
Be part of the community on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/worldmusicchartseurope).

January 2024

1 DENS prev month: 9 Lenhart Tapes • Serbia • Glitterbeat

2 PERSEPHONE prev month: 84 Luigi Cinque, Stefano Saletti & Urna Chahar-Tugchi • Italy/China • Materiali Sonori

3 DIEUF-DIEUL DE THIES prev month: --- Dieuf-Dieul de Thies • Senegal • Buda Musique

4 VAPOR prev month: 50 Bixiga 70 • Brazil • Glitterbeat

5 DOUBLE YOU prev month: 1 Catrin Finch & Aoife Ni Bhriain • UK (Wales)/Ireland • Bendigedig

6 ČO MI JE, TO MI JE prev month: --- Hrdza • Slovakia • self released

7 KORA WORLD prev month: 2 Maher Cissoko • Senegal • Ajabu!

8 DIRÉ prev month: 3 Idrissa Soumaoro • Mali • Mieruba

9 BEEHIVE prev month: 5 Jono Heyes • New Zealand • Asphalt Tango Records

10 UDOLC prev month: 45 Alba Careta i Henrio • Spain (Catalonia) • Segell Microscopi

11 ORIGINS prev month: 10 Negarit Band • Ethiopia • Buda Musique

12 DEN STORE SOMMER prev month: 155 Helene Blum & Harald Haugaard Band • Denmark • Galileo

13 GILGUL prev month: 7 Dorůžka/Fischmann/Novák • Czech republic • Animal Music

14 ALWAYS CAN’T GO ON FOREVER prev month: --- Don Kipper • UK/Greece • World Music Network

15 KOSTO prev month: --- Vilma Jää • Finland • Jäähile Records

16 A BRIGHTER FUTURE prev month: 14 Johanna Juhola • Finland • Nordic Notes

17 QIRIM prev month: 6 Jamala • Ukraine • self released

18 KÄKI prev month: --- Ilkka Heinonen • Finland • Rockadillo

19 VOX ORGANI prev month: --- Katta • Czech republic • Emika Records

20 BADOQUE prev month: --- Dossel • Brazil • self released

TRANSGLOBAL WORLD MUSIC CHART

https://www.transglobalwmc.com/charts/january-2024-chart/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/transglobalwmc

There’s always more

You can listen as the programme is broadcast or streamed on the radio stations below. You can catch up next week on Mixcloud and you can find out more at davysims.com

Saturday:
West Coast FM Namibia 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm Central Africa Time (2:00 to 4:00 GMT)
World FM  10:00 pm local New Zealand Time (11:00 am GMT, 12:00 noon CET)
Essential Radio Midnight to 2:00 am GMT (1:00 am CET)

Sunday:
NFRS Osaka Japan: 12:00 noon local time (3:00 am UK time 4:00 am CET)
Bangor FM 107.9 (Radio Garden) 7:00 pm local time (8:00 pm CET)
Slice Audio 10:00 pm local time (11:00 pm CET)
Ferry FM 10:00 pm local time (11:00 pm CET)
Radio Larne 10:00 pm local time (11:00 pm CET)
Armagh City Radio 10:00 pm local time (11:00 pm CET)

Monday:
Reverse FM: 00:00 am GMT (01:00 CET)
SparkFlame Radio: 00:00 amGMT (01:00 CET)
Waterwaves Radio: 8:00 pm GMT (21:00 CET)
KNC Radio St Lucia 6:00 am local time (10:00 am GMT 11:00 am CET)
BR2 Pure Gold Radio - Costa Blanca, Spain 10:00 pm local time (CET)
Akaroa World Radio 10:00 pm local New Zealand Time (11:00 am GMT, 12:00 noon CET)
World FM 10:00 pm local New Zealand Time (11:00 am GMT, 12:00 noon CET)

Tuesday:
Global Music Radio Wednesday 6:00pm-8:00pm GMT (7:00 pm CET
Lisburn’s 98FM (Radio Garden) 7:00 pm local time GMT (8:00 pm CET)
FM105 Down Community Radio (Radio Garden) 7:00 pm local time GMT (8:00 pm CET)

Wednesday:
World FM 4:00 am local New Zealand Time (5:00 pm Tuesday GMT, 6:00 pm CET)
Slice Audio 4:00 am local time GMT (5:00 am CET)
Global Music Radio: 6:00 pm GMT (7:00 CET)
Radio Skye (Radio Garden) 10:00 pm GMT (11:00 pm CET)

Friday:
Akaroa World Radio  2:00 pm local New Zealand Time (3:00 am GMT 4:00 am CET)