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March 13–20, 1997

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Pomo McDiscs

Where to find the Afro-Celtic sound.

 


Mouth Music

Mouth Music (Rykodisc)

This is one of the pioneering Afro-Celt albums, combining Talitha MacKenzie's Gaelic vocals with African percussion and synthesizers. Mesmerizing!

 

Talitha MacKenzie

Solas (Shanachie)

Spiorad (Shanachie)

These albums take the ideas of Mouth Music a step further, emphasizing MacKenzie's powerful and moving vocals, but retaining the world percussion and the high-tech groove. Solas includes lots of rave and hip-hop touches including a sampled speech from JFK. Spiorad moves out even further, incorporating reggae, Balkan and Central European influences.

 

Capercaillie

Delirium (Green Linnet)

Get Out (Green Linnet)

Secret People (Green Linnet)

More gorgeous Gaelic singing backed with acoustic and electric instruments, hot percussion and hip bass lines. Get Out features remixes and live versions, mostly with more Afro and techno touches. Secret People is Celtic worldbeat at its best, and Delirium runs the gamut from almost straight folk to Afro-Celt.

 

Afro-Celt Sound System

Volume 1 Sound Magic (Real World)

All the rage right now! This takes the idea of African and Celtic fusion as far as it has gone to date, with not only percussion but melodic instruments from members of Baaba Maal's band meeting some of Ireland's best.

 

Simon Thoumire and Fergus MacKenzie

Exhibit A (Iona)

MacKenzie is a studio wizard, synthmeister and programmer, while Thoumire plays the hippest English concertina and pennywhistle you're ever likely to hear. Dance rhythms meet jigs and reels.

 

Llwybr Llaethog

Mewn Dyb (ROIR)

This one's weird: tough, heavy, scratched trip-hop, with a Celtic lilt and Welsh vocals.

 

Dao Dezi

World Mix Album (Metro Blue)

Another great disc for ravers and trancers; heavy references to recent dance styles, applied to Breton tradition. Compelling.

 

Eileen Ivers

Eileen Ivers (Green Linnet)

Wild Blue (Green Linnet)

Both of Ivers' albums include Nigerian drummer Kimati Dinizulu. Both are wild rides; pick Wild Blue for a more experimental sound with more of Dinizulu's magic.

 

Abana Ba Nasery

!Nursery Boys Go Ahead! (Xenophile)

A wonderful trio from Kenya featuring two guitars and a Fanta bottle scraped with a metal rod. Their CD features some top Celtic and British folk musicians in supporting roles, with a few tracks of true Afro-Celtic fusion.

— Steve Winick

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