Great Unknowns from a Troubled Island

Following on from my Ibo Combo post, here's another great group, Les Difficiles de Petion-Ville, that's inexplicably obscure outside Haiti and its diaspora. This guitar band demonstrates a truly rare mastery of musical excitement - their records feature wave after wave of driving rhythms and tasty, stinging guitar riffs, further buoyed by catchy call-and-response vocal choruses (a typical Africanism). Great for dancing, this is music to animate the dead!


"Coq Qualite", their 5th album, is a superb example of their style of Konpa (a.k.a. Kompa, Compas). It's typically hard to come by - Sakapfet is probably the best online source, although you may need to telephone them to arrange international (i.e. non-US) shipping. I've been unable to find sound samples for this particular album, but here are samples from another (somewhat more laid-back on the whole, but track 07 gives a decent preview of what to expect on "Coq Qualite").

And here's a good reference for learning more about this style of music.

(Reunion) Island Charm, Nostalgia and Swing

Claude Vinh San (a.k.a. Bao Vang) is the son of the last Emperor of Annam (Vietnam), Duy Tân, who was exiled to Reunion. As is briefly noted in Vinh San's Wikipedia page, he is an accomplished musician, and a little Reunion label named Takamba have just beautifully reissued his early (1960's) musical output.


"Claude Vinh San et le Jazz Tropical" is a winner of a disc, recommendable to those with an interest in French music (lovely musette and chanson here...), African music (plenty of tasty rhythms), 1960's music, or indeed music with charm and swing to spare.

This is the latest in a series of discs from Takamba devoted to the patrimoine musical of the Indian Ocean. The dics's packaging is fantastic - a small book containing great archival photos (including a comprehensive set of album covers), plus liner notes in English and (in far more detail...) French. I've sometimes been annoyed by Takamba's audio restoration efforts - too much clean-up can rob old recordings of body - but such problems are hardly in evidence here.

Sound samples (and mp3 files for download) are available here. If, like me, you're still hooked on those little shiny discs, buy this from Discorama on Reunion.

Japanese New Wave Cinema: Masahiro Shinoda's "Pale Flower"

Masahiro Shinoda's "Pale Flower" is a terrific yakuza, or gangster, film made in the mid-60's. It was inspired, according to the director, by Japan's post-war malaise, in particular its side-lining by the major players of the Cold War. It's main characters are accordingly frustrated, bored, spiritually bereft, as they speed between high-stakes gambling venues in search of thrills.


Gambling is central to the story, and the film features many excellent scenes which present the activity in artful, almost fetishistic, detail. Indeed, the repetitive, rhythmic monotones of the dealer, the spellbound congregation in the hall, seem to bring the characters as close to church as they ever get. I should mention that Shinoda's presentation of gambling in "Pale Flower" led to the film being banned in Japan!

The superb modernist soundtrack was composed by Toru Takemitsu.

"Pale Flower" is sheer class all the way through, and a must-see for fans of classic cinema. American Cinemateque's DVD contains a very good transfer of the film.

I can also highly recommend Shinoda's "Silence" (a forerunner and companion piece to Joffé's "The Mission"), and "Assassination".

Masters of Gwo Ka, Masters of Jazz

Ornette Coleman is a truly remarkable artist, who literally endured beatings in the 1950's in order to make himself heard. His entire musical conception was so radical then (he even inspired disdain from some legendary Jazz modernists), but has become an integral part of modern jazz expression, and Coleman himself is now one of the (living) saints of the Jazz tradition. Which is why he was asked to curate a London music festival happening this Summer on the South Bank: Ornette Coleman's Meltdown.

I saw David Murray and the Gwo Ka Masters live tonight at QEH as part of the Meltdown. It was a great show! Murray may not owe a direct stylistic debt to Coleman, but there's no doubt that the older man is a spiritual godfather of his intense, wired-directly-into-the-soul saxophone playing. The Gwo Ka project is a merging of Murray's sax with traditional (Gwo Ka) musicians from Guadeloupe plus a Jazz Funk band. It all worked rather well on the night, and a differing emphasis on the various elements of the group sound provided pleasant variety to the set. The concert made me quite happy, and I was inspired to go home and listen to some more music from Guadeloupe...

First off, a CD from one of the Guadeloupeans who shared the stage with Murray tonight - Francois (Fanswa) Ladrezeau. His album "ESPWA KOURAJ" is a lively and original graft onto the roots of the vocal and percussion tradition of Gwo Ka - it's truly something special from the first minute.


The next recommendation is "TWA SET" by Erick Cosaque, a legendary Caribbean musician. It's rare to find any of Cosaque's recordings (online specialist vendors of used vinyl, e.g. http://cdandlp.com, would probably be the best bet), although he's made quite a few over a long career. So I snapped up this 2009 recording when I saw it available online, and certainly wasn't disappointed. It's mellow, lovely, authentically Caribbean music, and makes me long for a few days spent in island sunshine.


Sounds samples for both albums are available from Antilles Mizik (see album links above), who seem to be the only retailer making these albums internationally available.

Hideo Gosha's "Goyokin"

Hideo Gosha is a prolific Japanese director whose output includes some excellent films, many in the Samurai genre. "Goyokin" is a stellar example. It stars Tatsuya Nakadai who also featured in the superb "Harakiri", and this film explores similar themes: in particular, the depravity and hypocrisy rife within the Shogunate.


Nakadai plays Magobei, a noble Samurai driven into self-exile when he can no longer countenance the evil ways of his fellows, who fund their domain criminally and with no regard for the terrible human cost. Hating himself for his cowardice, he gets wind of an upcoming heist, and returns to tie up the loose ends he left three years ago.

The film looks fabulous - the cinematographer makes much of the barren, snow-swept coastline that plays a central role in the story; the rotten eaves of a deserted hut form an abstract silhouette against a dead, grey sky; all in all, a visual treat. There's also some enjoyable traditional Japanese music featured, not least a drumming ensemble that forms a dramatic backdrop to the film's final confrontation (there had to be one, right...?).

"Goyokin" is an action movie that is also a fine work of art, in the manner of a Sergio Leone Western. Tokyo Shock's R1 DVD is utterly recommendable.

Golden Age of Filmi

Indian film music (Filmi) is an endlessly inventive genre, with some stunning singers. Lata Mangeshkar is one of the greatest of these, and features heavily on this very nice album from Saregama, presenting soundtracks from three mid-C20 movies (Barsaat/ Aah / Aag).



Really enjoyable, rich and varied Indian sounds in a popular, accessible context - open-minded music-lovers will love this.

Absurdity of Love: Wong Kar Wai's "Ashes of Time, Redux"

Wong Kar Wai's films (those that I've seen, anyway) are light-hearted, nostalgic affairs that portray the absurdities to which we subject ourselves in the name of love. Ashes of Time, Redux presents this theme with a twist: the film is set in the sword-filled hinterlands of ancient China.



Plot-wise, this is an enigmatic film, but to my mind plot is almost incidental... mood takes precedence here, and I'd recommend not taking the more cryptic aspects of the story too seriously. It's a ravishingly beautiful movie - Christopher Doyle's cinematography steals the show, the landscapes being particularly spectacular, and the costumes are great.

All in all, a highly memorable, vaguely tongue-in-cheek tale of forsaken love, longing, and epic desert sword-fights. Just watch it!

Artificial Eye's UK DVD is brilliant. There's also a Blu-ray version available.