Tag Archives: Balkan music

Elina Duni and Rob Luft’s Lost Ships

I was utterly beguiled by Elina Duni the first time I heard her sing, which was on the ECM debut of her longtime quartet, 2012’s Matanë Malit. On that first album and the follow-up Dallëndyshe with Colin Vallon, Patrice Moret … Continue reading

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Emmi Kujanpää’s Nani

Finnish folk singer, composer, teacher and researcher Emmi Kujanpää continues her ongoing exploration of the intersection of Finnish and Balkan music with her first “solo” recording Nani. I put solo in quotes because this album includes the contributions of the … Continue reading

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Blato Zlato’s In The Wake

I went to a good number of musical events in 2019, and one of the most enjoyable was a performance and dance put on by the New Orleans-based Balkan band Blato Zlato. They’re a superb folk ensemble playing mostly Bulgarian-style … Continue reading

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Blato Zlato at Podkrepa Hall, Portland Oregon, 9 June 2019

Whenever I hear live Balkan music, I find myself wondering, “Why do I ever listen to anything else?” The wild rhythms, the hair-raising harmonies, the tunes that leap in an instant from the depths of despair to the tallest mountaintop … Continue reading

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Elina Duni’s Partir

“We’re all leaving. Bound to be torn away, one day or another, from what we love.” With those words Elina Duni welcomes her audience in to her latest project, a cycle of songs from around the world about love, loss … Continue reading

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Eva Salina and Peter Stan’s Sudbina

This review is different from nearly every one I’ve ever written, in that it draws more from the album’s publicity and background than my opinions about the recording itself. The publicity material is uncommonly well-written and presents quotes from the … Continue reading

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Damir Imamovič’s Sevdah Takht’s Dvojka

This album was actually released in 2016 but only recently came to my attention. My ear has wandered away from Balkan music for a while, and Damir Imamovič turns out to be a great attention-getter. Imamovič is the scion of … Continue reading

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Amira Medunjanin’s Damar

I haven’t listened to a lot of sevdah, but I am familiar with Mostar Sevdah Reunion, probably the best-known sevdah group outside of Bosnia & Herzegovina. Amira Medunjanin sang on their 2003 album A Secret Gate before going on to … Continue reading

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Boiled in Lead’s 17 March 2001

Boiled in Lead are, without any doubt, one of the best live Celtic/punk/balkan fusion bands on the planet bar none. Confused yet? Well, let’s have Chuck Lipsig in his essential Boiled In Lead omnibus give a go at explaining them: ‘The problem … Continue reading

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Boiled in Lead’s Silver 

Before commenting on Boiled in Lead’s Silver, CD, let me stress one point: “punk” is a general descriptive term denoting, most often, a subgenre. Thus we have celtopunk, Christian punk, glam punk, and any number of other punks in music. In … Continue reading

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