Spring Break
The international music scene offers interesting, eclectic artists
Daniel Younessi
Issue date: 10/8/08 Section: Focus
Every once in a while, some of us get tired of the derivative popular music industry. Sometimes, your money should go to people who almost never get it and really deserve it. The rest of the world has a lot of great music to offer, and if you college students don't get out and do their bit, no one will. So here are some artists to get you all started:
Fela Kuti
Should be the best known of all the following musicians. He is constantly cited in music classes and the hippie and Black Power movements made him famous throughout the world.
"Once you put him on, it's physically impossible to turn him off," 7th-semester pharmacy major Stephen Bendel said.
Kuti was the pioneer of Afrobeat, a style of upbeat dance music mixing African polyrhythm with reggae and jazz improvisation. Almost every one of Fela Kuti's 10 plus minute songs start with at least five minutes of instrumental improvisation before the catchy call and response vocals enter. Expensive S--- is most characteristic of Kuti's style. Telling the story of the corrupt arrest of Kuti by the Nigerian government, the lyrics, while funny and satirical often take a back burner to an intense desire to dance. This album, incidentally, is the only recommendation here that will be suitable for the weekend.
Highlights: "Expensive S---"
Skip: Nothing
Carlos Núñez
When most of us picture Spain as the land of dry landscapes, thin women in polka dotted dresses and flamenco, we forget the mountainous wet forests of northern Spain, long populated by Celtic tribes. Carlos Núñez brings us music from Galicia. A piper, both flute and bag, Núñez presents here an intense mix of Celtic piping mixed with more traditional flamenco guitar and chanting that dates back to the Arabs. His debut and best album, "A Irmandade das Estrelas" showcases some instant iPod top plays, as his music, which swings from drinking song to forlorn lament, can really suit any situation. Despite the quality of some tracks, Núñez sometimes falls dangerously close to Riverdance territory and that's disappointing.
Fela Kuti
Should be the best known of all the following musicians. He is constantly cited in music classes and the hippie and Black Power movements made him famous throughout the world.
"Once you put him on, it's physically impossible to turn him off," 7th-semester pharmacy major Stephen Bendel said.
Kuti was the pioneer of Afrobeat, a style of upbeat dance music mixing African polyrhythm with reggae and jazz improvisation. Almost every one of Fela Kuti's 10 plus minute songs start with at least five minutes of instrumental improvisation before the catchy call and response vocals enter. Expensive S--- is most characteristic of Kuti's style. Telling the story of the corrupt arrest of Kuti by the Nigerian government, the lyrics, while funny and satirical often take a back burner to an intense desire to dance. This album, incidentally, is the only recommendation here that will be suitable for the weekend.
Highlights: "Expensive S---"
Skip: Nothing
Carlos Núñez
When most of us picture Spain as the land of dry landscapes, thin women in polka dotted dresses and flamenco, we forget the mountainous wet forests of northern Spain, long populated by Celtic tribes. Carlos Núñez brings us music from Galicia. A piper, both flute and bag, Núñez presents here an intense mix of Celtic piping mixed with more traditional flamenco guitar and chanting that dates back to the Arabs. His debut and best album, "A Irmandade das Estrelas" showcases some instant iPod top plays, as his music, which swings from drinking song to forlorn lament, can really suit any situation. Despite the quality of some tracks, Núñez sometimes falls dangerously close to Riverdance territory and that's disappointing.
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