06-10-2024, 16:25
AFRO CELT SOUND SYSTEM ~ Ova
![[Image: a3229254616_16.jpg]](https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a3229254616_16.jpg)
I don’t know too much about this outfit except that there was an album that I used to quite like – back in the dark ages. I must say, it was an enjoyable listen – this one. Something completely different to what I’ve been hearing lately – a far cry from La Callas!
The founder of Afro Celt Sound System, Simon Emmerson passed away last year but was literally instrumental in laying down most of these tracks and in fact, he continued offering inputs right to the very last, from his bed. R.I.P.
This music reflects a melding of cultures, as can be inferred by the project’s name. While producing a record for Baaba Maal, Emmerson had noticed a strong correlation between the music of West Africa and the traditional music of his native Ireland. There is one song in particular on this album, sung in Gaelic by Iarla Ó Lionáird which reminds me so much of Robert Plant. He had made that connection too – albeit in a more roundabout way. Same origins though, in the end.
I liked the energy of it, as well as the instrumentation - not sure exactly what's being played and by whom, but there is a kora or two. I have never really cared about the language barrier either – a song can make you feel in whichever tongue it’s given voice.
The opener – “The Hawk Owl’s Lament”
I don’t know too much about this outfit except that there was an album that I used to quite like – back in the dark ages. I must say, it was an enjoyable listen – this one. Something completely different to what I’ve been hearing lately – a far cry from La Callas!
The founder of Afro Celt Sound System, Simon Emmerson passed away last year but was literally instrumental in laying down most of these tracks and in fact, he continued offering inputs right to the very last, from his bed. R.I.P.
This music reflects a melding of cultures, as can be inferred by the project’s name. While producing a record for Baaba Maal, Emmerson had noticed a strong correlation between the music of West Africa and the traditional music of his native Ireland. There is one song in particular on this album, sung in Gaelic by Iarla Ó Lionáird which reminds me so much of Robert Plant. He had made that connection too – albeit in a more roundabout way. Same origins though, in the end.
I liked the energy of it, as well as the instrumentation - not sure exactly what's being played and by whom, but there is a kora or two. I have never really cared about the language barrier either – a song can make you feel in whichever tongue it’s given voice.
The opener – “The Hawk Owl’s Lament”
"The surest sign that intelligent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that it has never tried to contact us." ~ Bill Watterson