Giving Them the Bird: Juliana & PAVA with "A Winter Solstice Song I"

Today's very short random song is by Juliana & PAVA, and is called A Winter Solstice Song I (I know, a little out of season but that's what randomness gets you). A vocal ensemble that focuses on Russian traditional and ancient folk songs, Juliana & PAVA was founded in Denmark in 2000 by Juliana Svetlitchnaia. The group moved to the United States in 2005, where they settled in Seattle and formed a revamped ensemble. They have received many awards and accolades, and their music brings one back to a village in traditional Russia and its celebrations such as holidays, weddings and funerals, as well as cyclical rituals of the year like harvest or midsummer. The name PAVA means peacock, a symbolic animal for Russia, and in that spirit the singers wear colorful traditional costumes, some as old as 200 years. You can find A Winter Solstice Song I on Juliana & PAVA's 2010 album Let the Bird Fly.

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.ethnorussia.com/pava.htm

Movin' to the Groovin': Laid Back and "Groovin' on a Feeling"

We're groovin' today with our random tune, called Groovin' on a Feeling. The performers, John Guldberg and Tim Stahl, perform together as a duo in Denmark called Laid Back. After initially meeting as members of The Starbox Band, they split from the group after the band was received poorly after performing as an opening act for The Kinks. They remained working together as Laid Back, and in a small Copenhagen studio they began to record tracks. They released their first album in 1981 which yielded a number one hit, Maybe I'm Crazy, in Denmark. The next year they released a single, Sunshine Reggae, which not only hit number one in their home country but also in many other countries of Western Europe. That single's B-side, called White Horse, became a hit in the US club scene. The duo was openly admired by the English band New Order, who copied their vocal style. They have released thirteen albums. Groovin' on a Feeling can be found on their 1999 album Happy Dreamer, and on the compilation CD Putumayo Presents: World Party (2007).

Hooked On It Too: Laid Back and "Groovin' On a Feeling"

Today's random tune is brought to you by Laid Back, a Danish electronic duo formed in 1979 and based in Copenhagen, Denmark. John Goldberg and Tim Stahl met as members of The Starbox Band, which opened for The Kinks at their Copenhagen concert but received poor reviews. The Starbox Band split up after that show but the duo continued to work together, exploring new possibilities in sound made possible by advancing technology. They has released four albums over two decades, and also gained the Danish equivalent of an Oscar for their soundtrack for a major Danish film. This song, Groovin' on a Feeling, is from their 2013 album Happy Dreamer, although it was also released in 2007 on Putumayo's compilation called World Party.