Category Archives: Reviews

CD Review: Uri Sharlin and the DogCat Ensemble… a fine musical experience

DogCat_BTTWAlbumCoverArtist: Uri Sharlin and the DogCat Ensemble
Title: Back in the Woods
Label: Folk Dune Records
Genre: fusing jazz and classical influences with Balkan rhythms, Arabic modes and Brazilian harmonies

CD Review by Dawoud Kringle

Uri Sharlin (accordion, piano, and wurli) and his group the DogCat Ensemble (Gili Sharett; bassoon, Matt Darriau; bass clarinet, Kyle Sanna; guitar, Jordan Scannella; bass, Rich Stein; percussion, John Hadfield; percussion, and special guests, Ital Kriss; flute and alto flute, Ze Mauricio; Pandeiro, and Michael Lavalle; zabumba) have presented a nicely composed and executed musical offering.

Continue reading →

CD Review: Van-Anh Vanessa Vo’s “Three Mountain Pass”… a master of the silence between notes

Van_ThreeMountainPassCoverArtist: Van-Anh Vanessa Vo
Title: Three Mountain Pass
Label: Innova Recordings
Genre: Vietnamese folk music

CD Review by Dawoud Kringle

The first track of Three Mountain Pass leaps out at the listener. A solo piece performed on the danTranh (a 16-string Vietnamese zither with movable bridges and the springy, bending tones, resembling the koto), adopted from a traditional opera by Cải lương. Silvery threads of sound leap about in a primordial dance. Notes glide and bend into each other with precision and beauty. One is drawn into this arcane poem of slippery metallic tones and almost indefinable notes, leaving the listener wondering why this strange language speaks so eloquently to one’s spirit. In a time when highly skilled Asian musicians (not to mention attractive female Asian musicians) seem in a surplus, Van-Anh Vanessa Vo stands out as someone with something unique to offer.

Continue reading →

CD Review: Tomas Doncker Band…It is powerful and joyous, hopeful without being sentimental, connected to its roots without slavishly imitating them.

Tomás-DonckerArtist: Tomas Doncker Band
Title: Power of the Trinity​.​.​.​A Slight Return” (The Global Soul Mixtape Vol​.​1)
Format: CD EP
Label: self released
Genre: global soul/funk

Review by Dawoud Kringle

An explosive drum beat, a vocal chorus by famed Ethiopian singer Gigi, a combination punch from the horn section, and a funky backbeat lay the groundwork for Tomas Doncker’s newest effort. The groove stays solid throughout. But now and again, an unmistakable Ethiopian / East African spirit possesses the song, infusing it with a contrast that nonetheless seems not only to work, but was always hiding within the essence of the whole genre.

Continue reading →

Concert Review: Kaveh Haghtalab and (guest) Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardy play the Persian blues… It was all poetry…!

995924_10151566077138074_162987090_nDate: October 1, 2013
Venue: Cafe Nadery (NY)

Review by Dawoud Kringle

One must experience the scene at Cafe Nadery. It’s Iranian culture distilled into a small gathering place within which modern Persian intellectuals, artists, and philosophers, fiercely independent and slightly eccentric men, and impossibly beautiful women cultivate an Iranian American subculture.

Continue reading →