soundway comes alive!
28May09
If you love Soundway the way we love Soundway — and I think you do! — you’ll probably want to keep an eye on Soundway’s just-launched YouTube channel. Up now is a trailer for the upcoming sequel to their excellent Panama! compilation, and if you want to get vinyl versions of the Soundway titles you’ve downloaded from eMusic (and why wouldn’t you?) you can grab those at the just-launched Soundway website. I am re-jiggering my budget as I type this.
Awesome! Thanks, Joe. Not to be greedy (I haven’t even digested the three new Soundway discs we recently received), but is there more on the way from this label?
BTW: Picking up the Honest Jon’s label — also awesome.
Hey, Daniel! So the way I understand it is that the label is in a state of “re-boot” right now. They mentioned that they did, indeed, have digital rights to the older titles — Ghana Soundz, etc — but (much like the Nigeria Special discs), we have no idea when we’ll see ‘em on the site. My guess is that one day we’ll all log in, and there they’ll be.
The trailer is great–basically a 5 minute history of Panamanian music.
As far as my musical taste is concerned, Soundway has the best batting average of any label–4 for 4, so far.
awesome label
Hey, Joe! What’s your favorite of the Soundway Nigeria comps? At the moment, I’d say Nigeria Rocks. You can’t deny dreamy cuts like “Chant to Mother Earth,” with that coiled serpent of a guitar line and the echo-y wordless vocals on the chorus (tho, TBH, there aren’t many “dreamy” songs on the disc; mostly, it’s sizzling (psych) rock-funk).
Hey Daniel -
I have a soft spot for the first one, but Nigeria Rock is a close second. I like the Disco one, too, but not quite as much. But for my money, the best of the SoundWay comps is the TP Orchestre PolyRythmo comp. Just amazing, kinda psych-y, really percussive — I keep hoping something by that group will show up on eMusic, but no luck yet.
The constant temptation for me is to drop the $40 it would take to get these things on vinyl. I haven’t caved…yet.
That first Soundway disc was my gateway-drug into the Nigeria 70s compilations. But I think my absolute favorites from that genre/era are the two Strut compilations (Nigeria 70 and Nigeria 70: Lagos Jump), with the Nigeria Rock comp close behind. That rising, dreamy organ in the chorus of “Dododo (Ekassa No. 1)” (on Lagos Jump) is perfect.
Another one I’m dying to hear is “African Scream Party,” on the Analog Africa label (not on eMusic, unfortunately).
And can we talk about how awesome it is to have the Honest Jon’s label on eMusic? The Arab music comp “Open Strings,” is a revelation. I like how the guitars swerve from hard and dry to watery and textured. Hoping more Honest Jon’s titles debut here.
Joe, have you sampled the new Soundway comp (Panama! 2)? I raved about Song No. 9 — “Dreams,” by The Duncan Bros. — on yesterday’s new arrivals thread, but I’m repeating it again here because I can’t stop listening to it. It’s hypnotic (and the tenth song — a cover of “Ain’t No Sunshine” — is almost as good (and sounds better to me than the original, frankly)). Link below.
http://www.emusic.com/album/Various-Artists-Panama-2-Latin-Sounds-Cumbia-Tropical-amp-Calyp-MP3-Download/11464653.html
It’s received some solid reviews: http://www.flyglobalmusic.com/fly/archives/latin_america_reviews/va_panama_2_latin_funk_and_cal.html (“Back in the 70s, Latin-electric guitar was Carlos Santana (in Europe anyway) but I now know that I need the funky-twang of The Duncan Brothers”).
The full song “Dreams” is available on the attached Podcast, at basically the 51-minute mark. Trust me, it’s everything I thought it was, and it wakes up that sleepy podcast of polite “world music” with some bite and groove. Check it out:
http://worldservice.podomatic.com/