John Parry, Author at Backseat Mafia

News: Daptone to release an album from Morocco’s Innov Gnawa; hear ‘Chorfa’

DAPTONE, the home of soul and funk, is one of those labels whose judgement you can trust; when they’re onto something you just know it’s going to deliver. News that…

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Album review: Sarah Haras – ‘Mirage’: deeply effective and affecting abstraction

Often abstract albums come across like a loose series of random sketches; but not Mirage. It’s got a clear vision that binds it together and like the best electronic music suggests something different to every listener each time they tune in … and that is some achievement

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Album Review: Caravela deliver the sparkling fusion of ‘Orla’

Now here’s a new thing beaming out from the London jazz firmament. Caravela, a five-piece multinational band from everywhere (well Portugal, South America and Australia), now based in the capital…

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Track: Laundromat release the track ‘Flat Planet’ ahead of new EP, ‘Red’

Customer advice- get into this Laundromat now before the crowds show up. After two sold out EPs on Brace Yourself (‘Blue’ and ‘Green’), the label has just announced ‘Red’, a…

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See: Toumani Diabate & The London Symphony Orchestra release video for ‘Hainamady Town’

Collaborations between improvising musicians and orchestras sometimes reveal nothing but a culture clash. The performances can sound disjointed and fragmented, the musical equivalent of cut and paste. But when Toumani…

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See: Florence Adooni releases new video for glorious new single ‘Mam Pe’ela Su’ure’

Need to raise those spirits? Here’s a gorgeous ray of Frafra gospel warmth to help you head for brighter days. Florence Adooni has been revered as one of the leading…

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Album Review: Coma World – Coma World

The London nu-jazz/electronic scene is one ecosystem that does more than sustain itself. From the Steamdown/Trinity/Deptford/Greenwich source point to the hubbub around Hackney’s Total Refreshment Centre to the outflow from…

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See: The Reds, Pinks and Purples reveal new video for ‘Don’t Ever Pray In The Church on My Street’

Here’s some news to help everyone countdown the days until spring time. The Reds, Pinks and Purples are due to deliver a new album ‘Uncommon Weather’ on April 9th via…

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Album Review: Ngozi Family – ‘45,000 Volts’ (reissue)

At times it’s hard to keep tabs on the overflowing treasure chest of re-issues from the ever-giving seventies African rock and funk scenes. But here is one gem that shouldn’t…

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Album Review: James Yorkston and the Second Hand Orchestra – The Wide, Wide River

Warm, natural, humorous, gentle, empathic ….all words that justifiably get bandied about in the scrabble to describe James Yorkston’s music. What’s often overlooked is his continued pursuit of different pathways…

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