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CD Review
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Rootsworld, CD Review >>
Kapela Ze Wsi Warszawa (The Band from the Village of Warsaw) is a traditional band, full of ancient singing (something described as "white voices" which to you and me means Värttinä or certain types of singing from the Baltics) and amazingly played traditional instruments. Those include skrzypice (an old Polish fiddle), bass, fiddle from Plock, jew's harp, baraban drum, frame drums and dhol. A strategic use dulcimer, hurdy-gurdy, double bass and trumpet add even more hues to this wonderful musical canvas. There is also humor, and extra helps make this band unique. This is, in the end, music that could only come from Poland, a country at the crossroads between the esoteric North, the mystical East, the passionate South and the analytical West, with the added spirit of a people who have seen more than their fair share of oppression.
"Pada Deszczyk" (The rain is falling) and the "Zurawie" (Cranes) are probably the best expressions of this. They sound a bit menacing, trance-like, very traditional and imbued with a youthful spirit. The wonderful liner notes (in Polish and English) talk of songs about breaking with the old traditions, especially related to forced marriages or the attitude of the society towards women.
There are also two studio remixes where the notion of the trance power of traditional music (central to the raison-d'être of KZWW) is enhanced through collaborations with DJs. These are far from fillers, and offer unexpected insights and elements from places like India.
Proud, inquiring, revolutionary, masterly performed, imbued with a youthful enthusiasm that revitalizes you on every listen and manifests why it still means something to be searching for music all over the world, instead of being content to listen to mainstream pop. This is a recording for anyone who is mesmerized by Värttinä, music from the Baltic States, the energy of Roma music or the mysticism of the Sufi, Dervish and Chassidic traditions.
- Nondas Kitsos
12/01/02 >> go there
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