Dubkasm - Shady Grove (Peng! Sound Records)
If on predecessor 'Rastrumentals', Digistep and DJ Stryda were still exploring the musical legacy of Charles, Digistep's father, for 'Shady Grove' the focus has shifted firmly back onto their home town of Bristol. In 10 tracks the duo honors places and figures that held or still hold a special meaning in the musical history of the city or for them personally.
Hoodna Orchestra - Ofel (Agogo Records)
Hoodna Orchestra is a twelve-piece Israeli formation around guitarist Ilan Smilan named after Hoodna, a bar in Tel Aviv where the band started rehearsing and gave their first concerts. From Arabic, "hoodna" can also be translated as a ceasefire, which can of course be considered a statement in itself as a name for an Israeli band.
Ifriqiyya Electrique - Laylet El Booree (Glitterbeat Records)
Ifriqiyya Electrique will probably never really be our cup of tea, as their sound, a mix of the trance rhythms from the Banga ritual of the descendants of African slaves in the oases of the Sjott el-Djerid in South-Tunisia and Western electro/punk rock was just a bit much for our delicate ears.
Tiken Jah Fakoly - Le Monde Est Chaud (Barclay/Universal)
With 'Le Monde Est Chaud', a title referring both to the literal warming up of the earth and the ecological disasters that come with it, and to the current global political climate in which one conflict follows another, Tiken Jah Fakoly returns to his roots.
Chiki Lora - Ura (Satélite K)
The name Chiki Lora may not immediately ring a bell, but if we add that in the past he fronted Canteca De Macao, amateurs of Spanish mestizo should know what we're on about.
Dub Silence - Anomalie (Self-published)
Dub Silence, a seven piece band with members hailing from Annemasse, Chambery and Lyon, may be the umpteenth French reggae band, but they managed to captivate us from the very first note with their debut album 'Anomalie'.
Tita Nzebi - From Kolkata (Bibaka)
Yours truly likes to shine a light on music from nations that so far have remained an almost blind spot on the world music map. The work of Tita Nzebi, from the small but oil-rich nation of Gabon in Central Africa certainly meets that description, but as you might have deduced from album title 'From Kolkata', the Gabonese also adds an Indian dimension to this album.
Various Artists - Reggae Style (Wagram)
The fact you can record a reggae version of just about every song in every genre is should be common knowledge by now, and for 'Reggae Style' the Wagram label collected no less than 64 reggae versions of well-known hits from soul, pop and rock history.
Kanazoé Orkestra - Tolonso (Buda Musique)
With 'Tolonso', Kanazoé Orkestra, the band around Burkinabe balafon master Seydou Diabaté, presents a successor to 'Miriya', their very much appreciated debut from 2016.
Coladera - La Dôtu Lado (Agogo Records)
With 'La Dôtu Lado' duo Coladera, consisting of singer and guitarist Vitor Santana from Belo Horizonte in Brazil and Portuguese vocalist/guitarist Joao Pires, once again prove how hip and yet little explored Cape Verdean music is.
Pixvae - Cali (Buda Musique)
Yours truly got to know Colombian-French combo Pixvae, composed of members of French math rock formation Kouma and Colombian Bambazu, specialized in traditional music from the Pacific region of Colombia, in 2016 thanks to their self-titled debut which featured Colombian currulao rhythms clashing with jazzcore.
Joggo - Love Ova War EP (Joggo Music Productions)
It had already been since 2015 that we'd last heard from Jurgen Orville Seedorf aka Joggo, but with this 'Love Ova War' EP, the Dutchman proves he hasn't lost any of his feathers yet.
The Dubbstyle - Sun Is Dub EP (Dub-O-Phonic)
Even in Latin America dub is being produced nowadays, as proven by Argentinean brothers Mauro and Federico Salina who are presenting their second release as The Dubbstyle with this 'Sun Is Dub' EP.
Various Artists - Tads Hi-Power Dub (Tad's Record)
Compared to the influx of European productions, the situation in Jamaica remains pretty quiet where dub releases are concerned. With this 'Tads Hi-Power Dub', the Tad's Record label is now trying to change that.
Desmond Dekker And The Aces - Pretty Africa (Trojan Records)
The treasure trove of forgotten or never released reggae records seems to be almost endless and this time it's Trojan Records who came across a gem that had been gathering dust for decades. We're talking about 'Pretty Africa', an album Desmond Dekker and his Aces recorded back in 1973 for producers Bruce White and Tony Cousins, but that never saw the light of day.
Mahom - King Cat (Flower Coast Records/ODG)
Since 2014's 'The Skankin' Cat', the Japanese maneki neko (literally translated: "beckoning cat", and considered a protective or good luck charm modeled on the Japanese cat) has been a signboard for French dub duo Mahom. Joris and Toinou have become a regular fixture in the French dub scene and with this new album crown themselves 'King Cat'.
Oku Onuora - I've Seen (Fruits Records)
Last year, French record label Iroko Records already re-released a vinyl version of 'I A Tell... Dubwise & Otherwise', the iconic 1993 album by Jamaican dub poet Oko Onuora, and now the Swiss Fruits Records label proudly presents his first new album in about 10 years.
Berlin Boom Orchestra - Reggae Punks (Springstoff)
Berlin Boom Orchestra is a nine-piece German reggae band around singer and MC Filou, lyrically mainly sticking to the language of Goethe.
Eumir Deodato - Os Catedráticos 73 (Far Out Recordings)
With 'Os Catedráticos 73', Far Out Recordings continues along the path they'd already taken with the reissue of 'Ataque', continuing to focus on the work of Os Catedráticos, Brazilian composer, arranger, producer and keyboard player Eumir Deodato's side project.
Blick Bassy - 1958 (No Format/Tôt Ou Tard)
In 2016 Cameroonian singer-songwriter Blick Bassy released 'Le Moabi Cinéma', his first, largely autobiographical, novel in which he looked for ways to regain control over his fate, how to escape from Western cultural imperialism, which is particularly noticeable in Africa, and how to pick up the thread of his own history. The answers to these pressing questions can now be found on '1958', a concept album in which he pays homage to the heroes of the Cameroon independence movement and Ruben Um Nyobè in particular.