Ragamuffins: Baraka Moon and "Raga Bayragi"

Raga Bayragi - with Baraka Moon from Ken Adams on Vimeo.


Today's randomtune is a fusion of Indian raga and Sufi trance music. Raga Bayragi is by Baraka Moon, a Pakistani, Indian, Australian, American band which fuses the above with didgeridoo, global drums and guitar to create music that transcends boundaries. Legend has it that they were founded on the night of a full moon eclipse in 2008. Raga Bayragi can be found on their 2011 CD Baraka Moon.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: http://www.barakamoon.com/home.html

His Father's Strut: Xylouris White and "Psarandonis Syrto"

Today's random tune is by an unlikely duo called Xylouris White. Greek Cretan singer and laouto player Giorgios Xylouris is paired up with Australian drummer Jim White in this song, Psarandonis Syrto. Xylouris, from a musical family, was taught by his uncle to play the laouto, a Cretan instrument, from a young age, and was performing and recording as early as the age of eleven. While the laouto has been generally considered an accompanying instrument, Xylouris performs it solo. Jim White is a drummer best known for his work in the Australian instrumental rock band Dirty Three. As a duo, Xylouris White's music combines free jazz, avant-garde rock and Greek traditional music. You can find Psarandonis Syrto on their 2014 debut album Goats. Psarandonis is the name of Xylouris' father.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylouris_White; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giorgos_Xylouris; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_White_(drummer)

Who's That?: Baraka Moon and "Allah Hoo"

Take a little Indian raga and add a generous helping of Sufi trance music and you have our random tune today. Allah Hoo is by Baraka Moon, a Pakistani, Indian, Australian, American band which fuses the music listed above with a dash of didgeridoo, global drums and guitar to create music that transcends boundaries. Legend has it that they were founded on the night of a full moon eclipse in 2008. Allah Hoo can be found on their 2011 CD Baraka Moon.

Waving with Chocolate Cake: David Bridie and "The Deserters"

From down under comes today's random tune. The Deserters is by David Bridie, a Melbourne, Australia musician who rose to prominence as a founding member of the group Not Drowning, Waving and then My Friend the Chocolate Cake. Besides his band work, he has released four solo albums. The Deserters can be found on his 2002 album Act of Free Choice.

Gypsy Moths: The Barons of Tang and "St. Vitus Dance"

Today's song is by The Barons of Tang, a Melbourne, Australia based group that provide what they call "gypsy deathcore." Begun in 2007, they began performing for underground theater and circus troupes. After their initial performances, they began touring Australia and other parts of the world, bringing their eclectic mix of tango, rockabilly, metal and gypsy music. They are relentless in their touring, and their music certainly has an edge. You can find this song, St. Vitus Dance, on their 2010 release Knots and Tangles.

Something to Fight For: Yothu Yindi and "Freedom"

Today's song is an homage to freedom by Australian group Yothu Yindi. Yothu Yindi is made up of aboriginal and non-aboriginal members formed in 1986. Their name means "child and mother" in Yolngu, the language of the Yolngu tribe of which the aboriginal members of Yothu Yindi belong. The band uses aspects of both Yolngu and non-aboriginal musical cultures, playing songs that vary from traditional aboriginal tunes to modern pop and rock, and they also blend modern and traditional instrumentation. They also incorporate traditional dance in their stage show. Through their music they have attempted to promote mutual respect and understanding, and they helped establish a foundation to promote Yolngu cultural development. The band's later years has been marked by tragedy - their lead singer died in 2013 of renal failure. This song, Freedom, can be found on their 2011 CD Freedom.

Aboriginal Spirit: Yothu Yindi and "Ghost Spirits"

Our random tune for today is from the land down under. Yothu Yindi is an Australian band made up of aboriginal and non-aboriginal members formed in 1986. Their name means "child and mother" in Yolngu, the language of the Yolngu tribe of which the aboriginal members of Yothu Yindi belong. The band uses aspects of both Yolngu and non-aboriginal musical cultures, playing songs that vary from traditional aboriginal tunes to modern pop and rock, and they also blend modern and traditional instrumentation. They also incorporate traditional dance in their stage show. Through their music they have attempted to promote mutual respect and understanding, and they helped establish a foundation to promote Yolngu cultural development. The band's later years has been marked by tragedy - their lead singer died in 2013 of renal failure. This song, Ghost Spirits, can be found on their 2011 CD Garma.

Picture This: Brother and "Photograph"

A little bit of a rock song for your random tune of the day. Photograph is by the Australian band Brother, which incorporates Celtic rock, mongrel rock, Australian rock, didgeridoo and vocals into a melange of interesting music. The band is made up of the Richardson brothers, who grew up in Bathurst (120 miles west of Sidney) and attended the Scots School where they learned to play pipes. They formed Brother in 1992 and began playing pubs in Sidney. After their first album was released, they were invited to open for Joe Walsh during his tour of Australia. Two of the brothers have since left the band, and it mainly tours the United States while returning to Bathurst for regular performances. Photograph can be found on their 2005 album Pax Romana MMV.

Gypsies from Down Under: Barons of Tang and "St. Vitus' Dance"

The first Australian band to appear as the tune of the day is certainly an interesting one. You might have expected something by Aboriginal peoples and incorporating didigeridoos, or something that sounds like more in the spirit of Colin Hay. But what you are getting is a self-described "Gypsy deathcore" band who has been described (and this is a great description) "a band with too many instruments and too much creativity, like an Indian deity with option anxiety." I love that!

The fact is that Balkan music is hot right now. In New Mexico, a local band made good is Beirut which has succeeded partly on its Balkan-style music. Another band with local ties, A Hawk and a Hacksaw, has also received good reviews for its music based on Middle Eastern and Balkan music. A recent documentary, Brasslands, follows three bands (one from the United States) as they attempt to win the best brass band international competition at the Guča Trumpet Festival in Serbia. Balkan music has taken Europe by storm, especially as it has been remixed into club dance music. It seems that in the regrowth of the war-torn Balkans, their music has served as a major force in bringing together disparate cultures as a part of internal healing and for helping restore Balkan countries' international reputations. Balkan music has been incorporated into many genres, but perhaps the most driving and intense has been the punk movement. I first heard gypsy punk when I was introduced to Gogol Bordello and his music. Not long after, I discovered Barons of Tang from Australia while looking for music for the Global Music Show. While Balkan music for me has been an acquired taste, I have enjoyed the morsels I have gotten.

Barons of Tang started out in 2007 playing for local underground theater and circus troupes. They soon forged their "gypsy deathcore" sound that mixes tango, rockabilly, metal and gypsy music. They play nationally in Australia and more recently internationally, crisscrossing the globe with wild abandon. They are described as creating joyous mental bedlam. St. Vitus' Dance is from their 2010 CD Knots and Tangles.