A World Music Smoothie—Fresh and Perfectly Blended

Crammed Discs’ 20 Ways to Float through Walls is both wildly eclectic and totally fabulous.  With contributions from Gypsies, Tuaregs, Brazilians, Brits, Belgians, and others, the album is a seriously entertaining world tour.  The disparate mix offers something for everyone, and each song has its own appeal. 

In such a grab-bag album, many songs are sure to captivate some people and leave others cold.  If you’re feeling adventuresome, take the plunge and buy the whole album.  If you prefer to cherry-pick, Amazon.com lets you download tracks individually for .99 cents apiece. 

Here are a few (of many) favorites:
—Kocani Orkestar, “Usti, Usti Baba”:  The horns on this Gypsy wedding song are dangerously catchy—they may just make you want to get married in Macedonia. 

—Sussan Deyhim with Bill Laswell, “The Candle and the Moth”:  Pent up emotion simmers just under the surface of this sensuous track from Iranian diva Deyhim.  Her nuanced vocals slip and slide over the low key Eastern instrumentation—quite the mood-setter.
—Mahala Rai Banda, “Morceau d’amour/Spoitoresa”:  The style of the Romanian vocals here somehow evoke the mournful wail of Middle Eastern belly dance music.  Layered over dirge-esque horns and, later in the song, a frenetic techno beat, it’s a trippy ride.
—Tartit, “Tabey Tarate”:  Hailing from Mali, this group of Tuaregs (a matrilineal Muslim society where the men wear veils rather than the women—go, ladies!) offers a spartan track, with tremulous voices and hand-clap percussion. 

 
—Tuxedomoon, “A Home Away”:  This American band does the horn-heavy Balkan Gypsy thing with a David Bowie-esque, 80’s twist.

The album is aptly titled, floating through the walls of genre and country.  It creates connections between people and cultures, which is world music at its best.