Flankup Italy Vinyl & CDs

Review: "Once upon a time, along the coasts of this sea, passed the silk road, the route of salt and spices, oils and perfumes, amber and ornaments, tools and weapons, of wisdom and knowledge, art and science.
Here different people and races have continued to interweave, unite and dispute for centuries as perhaps in no other religion on this planet." These are the words that introduce the new eponymous album by Flankup Recordings artist Sidi Bou Said or Paolo Russi and Marco Lanfranchi (aka. Indy). The Milanese duo, who originally joined forces over the creation of a score for a short documentary film - which told the story of twin brotherly cultures the Sicilians and Tunisians from the northern coast - expanded on that energy and decided to make a proper duo record. 'Sidi Bou Said' is, indeed, a stunning five-track composition, on which Paolo and Marco establish an inspiring array of Arabic disco, Afro-house and Balearic rhythms, and giving life to an acoustic, perceptible musical exploration of such pan-Mediterranean lands; gathering together, most importantly, in the most sensitive and conscious way, the sounds that portray them. The EP takes the listener on an auditory pilgrimage to the loudest and most vibrant Sicilian road markets with 'Babbaluci', then on to the unmistakable scent of spices and olfactory street-scenes of the titular neighbourhood, 'Sidi Bou Said', located north of Tunis. Then to the coastal town of 'Hel Haouaria' with its wind and shiny waters.