Chicago producer and DJ Antonio Cesar has used tens of thousands of dollars in grants to travel the world, exporting the city’s sounds and importing new influences.
Tag: Ghana
Posted inMusic
Sublime Frequencies releases an entrancing field recording of traditional Ghanaian gyil music
First things first. The gyil is a traditional West African xylophone with dried gourd resonators hung below most or all of its hardwood keys. (A similar instrument is called a “balafon” in Francophone Africa.) It’s usually tuned pentatonically, and its full, luminous tone is haloed with a cicada-like buzz, created by vibrating membranes made from […]
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Drummer Kahil El’Zabar elevates groove to a transcendent plane
The leader of the Ritual Trio and the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble is also a teacher, a connector, and an ambassador for Afrocentric jazz.
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Kriegmeister Hatestorm of Neckbeard Deathcamp on heavy music as protest
Current musical obsessions of Neckbeard Deathcamp front man Kriegmeister Hatestorm, Haggathorn guitarist Nathan Scripter, and Reader music editor Philip Montoro
Posted inBlogs
Heat yourself up with vintage grooves from Ghanaian singer Pat Thomas
Strut Records has released a superb career overview from veteran highlife vocalist Pat Thomas.
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Artist Larry Achiampong finds inspiration in Grand Theft Auto V and The Simpsons
He appears tonight at the Stony Island Arts Bank.
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The best of the 2016 World Music Festival
Highlights of the 2016 World Music Festival include Ethio-jazz pioneer Mulatu Astatke, electro-rumba innovators Ìfé, and forward-looking Indian classicists Anjna and Rajna Swaminathan.
Posted inBlogs
Behold the bizarre and bloody Ghanaian movie posters of Deadly Prey Gallery
Odd Obsession Movies owner Brian Chankin showcases his massive collection in West Town.
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“Sportin’ Waves,” Mixed Bag, and the rest of your weekend in visual arts
Your guide to visual arts in the city this weekend.
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The 24th African Festival of the Arts
The 24th African Festival of the Arts brings the likes of Otis Clay and Brandy to Washington Park.
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A second act for Ghanaian guitarist Ebo Taylor
Ghanaian highlife and Afrobeat great Ebo Taylor hits his stride in his mid-70s with a new studio album.
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Traces of the Trade
Katrina Browne uncovers the roots and the psychic consequences of her ancestors’ enormous slave trading empire in the documentary “Traces of the Trade: A Story of the Deep North,” in four free screenings in Chicago and the west suburbs starting Thursday.
Posted inBlogs
More Musical Riches From West Africa’s Seemingly Inexhaustible Supply
Analog Africa digs up another chest of West African treasure: “Afro-Beat Airways” demonstrates how far the genre could range from Fela Kuti’s template.
Posted inMusic
Blame Obama!
A tribute to the president brought together Chicago’s Occidental Brothers Dance Band International and their new front man: African superstar Samba Mapangala.
Posted inBlogs
The Man and the Dream
“Martin Luther King Jr.: The Man and the Dream” screens Thursday 1/7 at Chatham 14.