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: Sitar and Sistrum tessellate wildly on this fusion album from Baligh Hamdi, the prolific composer and hitmaker behind many Arabic chart-topping songs. 'Indo-Arabic Variations' hears him break from his focus on pop music for an instrumental album that consciously blends the musical traditions of India and Egypt, bringing together Indian sitar player Magid Khan and Abdel Halim Hafez's orchestra in re-reading some of the former's compositions - overall, sitar and tabla dance together with arghoul, ney and other Arabic instruments to produce a strikingly beautiful pandemonium.

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: If you like your jazz cinematic and expansive then look no further than this superb reissue of Un Hombre De Buenos Aires. It's a masterpiece of an album from Jorge Lopez Ruiz on the Altercat label that fused jazz, funk, and bossa vibes into all new forms. It was a move away from his earlier work which tackled more decisive political issues and instead hones in on his love of Buenos Aires. Listen to this one and you will wonder why the name Jorge Lopez Ruiz isn't more widely talked about because for our money it is right up there with some of the best of its ilk.

Review: It's hard to talk about anything other than the electrifying intensity Jorge Navarro's music manages to hit, no matter what the beginning of the track sounded like. A master of funk, he's among the most significant artists to help shape and direct jazz in Argentina, taking up responsibility for his homeland's mood, timing and rhythmic personality from the 1950s onwards, with this seven-track album arguably the most definitive Navarro moments, not least given the meaning of its title.

An expression used to describe something with great energy or strength, at this point in his career the aficionado had just spent a few years in the US, and the inspiration from that trip, the ideas and jumping off points were distilled into this record. Hence its remarkable immediacy and captivating sense of spontaneity.

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.

Review: We're always happy to have another reissue of Nana Vasconcelos works. this one from Altercat, 'Nana Nelson Angelo Novelli' is a cult album of Brazilian music from 1975, originally on the Saravah. It is a record which epitomizes of the sound of Clube da Esquina, which is the title given to an e explosion of sound fusions that occurred in Minais Gerais at around that time. It takes in rock 'n' roll, psychedelia, traditional bossa nova and percussive sounds and is well demonstrated here. Various moods, from the psychedelic 'No Sul do Polo Norte' to the funky 'Tiro Crusado' to the haunting 'Aranda' all make this a classic.

Review: One of two Nana Vasconcelos works to be rereleased on Altercat lately, 'Nana Nelson Angelo Novelli' is a cult album of Brazilian music, originally released in 1975 on the French label Saravah. This LP is the epitome of the sound of Clube da Esquina: the name given to a renaissance explosion of sound-fusions that occurred in Minais Gerais at around that time, with influences from rock 'n' roll to psychedelia to traditional bossa nova and percussive musics all colliding. Various moods, from the psychedelic 'No Sul do Polo Norte' to the funk-stencher 'Tiro Crusado' to the haunting 'Aranda' all owe to the musical breadth and versatility that has blessed Brazil since day dot.

Review: It would be fair to say that De Las Colonias Del Rio De La Plata is something of a little-known gem. Recorded in two days in Buenos Aries back in the autumn of 1976, the album remains the sole recorded output of Argentine keyboardist and producer Jorge Lopez Ruiz's jazz-fusion outfit, Viejas Raices. The album itself has long been sought-after by Latin jazz collectors, hence this handy - if frustratingly limited - vinyl reissue. Musically, it's a blast from start to finish, with Lopez Ruiz's electric piano and ARP synthesizer sounds riding extra-percussive Latin jazz grooves and some seriously groovy upright bass. Alternately floor-friendly and pleasingly laidback, the album's funky beauty and impressive musicianship is only heightened by the lack of fiery horns.

Review: ***B-STOCK: Creasing to corner of outer sleeve, product unopened & in excellent condition***


It would be fair to say that De Las Colonias Del Rio De La Plata is something of a little-known gem. Recorded in two days in Buenos Aries back in the autumn of 1976, the album remains the sole recorded output of Argentine keyboardist and producer Jorge Lopez Ruiz's jazz-fusion outfit, Viejas Raices. The album itself has long been sought-after by Latin jazz collectors, hence this handy - if frustratingly limited - vinyl reissue. Musically, it's a blast from start to finish, with Lopez Ruiz's electric piano and ARP synthesizer sounds riding extra-percussive Latin jazz grooves and some seriously groovy upright bass. Alternately floor-friendly and pleasingly laidback, the album's funky beauty and impressive musicianship is only heightened by the lack of fiery horns.

Review: Zeca do Trombone's first album Rota-Mar is well known to deep digging DJs who love its standout funk groover 'Te Queria'. Zeca's career started in the late 60s and saw him play with Wilson Simonal's band, as well as tour with Luiz Eca's Sagrada Familia and record Brazilian funk gem 'Coluna do Meio' with Roberto Sax. This album showed off all his veritable skills with disown characterful voice at the heart of each tune. Lyrically, he draws from the sea, love and bohemian life of Latin America and turns out some dazzling MPB and breezy funk grooves.