Altercat Vinyl & CDs

Review: Horacio Chivo Borraro is an Argentine saxophonist who toured with many bands and artists in the 1960s and 70s. His album Blues Para Un Cosmonauta is a curt four-tracker of naive-not-naive free jazz and avant-garde spiritualisms, all of which, in theme, collapse the boundary between actual space exploration and that of the figurative astral plane. A comparatively rare jazz record, now reissued in greater numbers, its mystique is backed up by its musical dubiousness, with quizzically trilling synths on the title track, or the potent and full-bodied electric pianos on 'Cancion De Cuna Para Un Bebe Del Ano 2000', spreading both confusion and delight.

Review: Brazilian singer Maria de Fatima's only solo album Baha con H was recorded in Uruguay in 1981 when the singer had settled with her then husband and synthesizer wizard Hugo Fattoruso. He was on production duties and the record mixes up classic covers of Brazilian sounds with plenty of original work and blended elements of Candombe, which were a result of the a-list of Uruguayan musicians who played on the recording. This is a first ever reissue of the album and it has been sourced from the original tapes. Liner notes are included as is a 12-page booklet with photos from Maria's own private archive.

Review: A groundbreaking 1973 post-bop, avant-garde jazz masterpiece from Argentina, Coraje Buenos Aires is infused with potent political themes and now emerges from obscurity. The record serves as the missing link in Argentina's jazz legacy, and surfaces after five decades to shed light on a tumultuous era. Recorded as a sequel to the seminal Bronca Buenos Aires (1971), Coraje boldly denounces the oppressive military regime through its poignant texts. Despite censorship attempts, the album's tapes resurfaced from the archive of the late Jorge Lopez Ruiz, meticulously restored by Pablo Lopez Ruiz. Accompanied by bilingual notes from Jose Tcherkaski, this historic release redefines Argentina's jazz narrative with its raw authenticity and unyielding spirit.

Review: One of two Nana Vasconcelos works to be rereleased on Altercat lately, Africadeus is a landmark album of Brazilian music that reveals the genius of the titular artist - regarded by many as one of the most innovative percussionists of all time. Above all, the album flaunts Nana's mastery of the berimbau, a Pan-African instrument that he essentially claimed as his own over the course of his career, and which he thus transformed into a bursting vessel for expression. A solo classic berimbau performance, 'Africadeus', appears on the A, while the B-siders 'Aboios' and 'Selecao De Folclore' are much more energetic pieces that celebrate the rich folkloric and pastoral culture of Nana's homeland.