Tags: Psychedelic Funk

Review: Charif Megarbane, the Beirut-based multi-instrumentalist and composer, stretches his sonic vocabulary on this sprawling new full-length, a genre-hopping journey that draws as much from the Lebanese coast as it does from the wider diaspora. Where his earlier work painted intimate portraits of local life, this one looks outwarditoward cultural entanglement, exile, and exchange. 'Hanadi' kicks things off with a sax-led, Somali-inspired groove, while 'Dreams of an Insomniac' drifts through hazy keys and fluttering violin. 'Al Dollarji' recalls his signature Mediterranean funk, full of ornate strings, but 'Al Bahriye' disrupts the flow with hip-hop motifs and vocal samples. Collaborations feel purposeful: 'Helia', with Swedish composer Sven Wunder and the Stockholm Studio Orchestra, layers lush cinematic strings into Megarbane's idiosyncratic palette. Even miniature pieces like 'Sfiha' or 'Preamble to the Conclusion' feel essential, punctuating the record's narrative of displacement with clarity and warmth. It's a collection that resists linearity, folding nostalgia and innovation into a rich, borderless soundian informal transmission between traditions, cities and moods.

Review: The Scepters, formed in 1967 in Paraiso by guitarist Celso Spencer, were a popular Panamanian band known for their energetic performances across military bases and high school dances in the Canal Zone. Alongside Lionel Best and Jose James, they covered Top 40 hits and iconic rock bands like Santana and Jimi Hendrix. They released two 45s, including 'Message,' which debuted at Panama's first National Soul Music Festival in 1971 and features next here to a jam from Conjunto Raza, another project led by Agustin Leiro, this one with rotating musicians. They released a single 45 on Onda Nueva in the mid-70s and it blends Zonian and Panamanian talent with aplomb.

Review: This reissue of the 1981 self-titled album from the cult Japanese duo Colored Music is now made available on vinyl for the first time since its original release. This groundbreaking mix of cosmic new wave, avant-garde synth-pop, experimental funk and unconventional disco is wonderfully unique and is reminiscent of David Bowie's Berlin Trilogy with a psychedelic Haruomi Hosono touch. Featuring celebrated musicians like Mansaku Kimura and Shuichi "Ponta" Murakami, Colored Music delivers an unparalleled, otherworldly soundscape that belies it ages.

Review: Spanish funk-rock group Barrabas formed in the 70s and had big success through that decade and the next. Drummer and producer Fernando Arbex lead the band and fomented a fusion of Latin rock and jazz-funk initially, before moving into a more disco orientated sound later on. Power was the band's second album and it came in 1973 with country-tinged tunes such as 'Boogie Rock', high speed funk workouts like 'Keep On Moving' and then more jazzy library sounds such as 'The Horse.' The second half of the album touches on busy dance floor funk like 'Casanova' and more stripped back and deep cuts like 'Children.'

Review: Madrid-based collective Danzon El Gato channel the city's restless creative energy into a vivid fusion of jazz, funk and roots music. Formed within Madrid's experimental scene, the group revolves around Javier Adan and Santiago Rapallo, longtime collaborators whose past projects range from jazz fusion to avant-garde film scores. This latest release sees them sculpt a kaleidoscopic sound, pulling from North African, Latin American and Mediterranean traditions while staying locked into the groove with a rhythm section indebted to 70s library music and golden-era hip-hop. Across the record, they explore an array of moods and textures. 'Ronda' pairs intricate guitar lines with a propulsive swing, while 'La lucha'ifeaturing Marina y su Melaoileans into percussive Latin jazz. 'Twangy Morocco' lives up to its name, weaving surf-rock guitar into an East-meets-West instrumental, whereas 'Chapoteo' ripples with aquatic, freeform interplay. 'Amambay' and 'Fuimos invencibles' showcase their knack for evocative storytelling through sound, shifting effortlessly between cinematic tension and unbridled release. Danzon El Gato craft music that reflects Madrid itselfidense with influences, rich in movement and ambiguousiin the best way. Their sound captures a city in flux, where past and present collide to create something unmistakably fresh.

Review: Satellites' self-titled 2020 debut album won plenty of plaudits, with critics the world over hailing the Tel Aviv-based band's blend of vintage, Turkish style psychedelic folk-rock and dancefloor adjacent grooves indebted to funk, soul and disco. Aylar, the six-piece's belated sequel, continues in this vein, with the band arguably being bolder with their musical choices. For proof, check the cosmic strut of opener 'Tisaldi Mehmet Elmi', a psych-funk transformation of a traditional Turkish folk song, the low-slung grooves and sweet retro-organ melodies of 'Midnight Sweat', the gritty, thrusting and hallucinatory 'Yok Yok' and the future dancefloor anthem that is psychedelic Turkish disco gem 'Zuluf Dokolmus Yuze'.

Review: Another vintage cumbia movement on 7", replete with cowbell, on Nu Tone. Specialising in two-trackers, these guys draw on the deeper wells of 60s and early 70s Peruvian psychedelia; here the Bay Area group Combo Tezeta fuse cumbias, chichas and musica tropical; The A brings 'La Danza Del Camaleon', a swirled world fusion of cumbia and salsa with psych-tinged flourishes, before 'La Reina Nocturna', a shadowy, slow-burning bolero that leans into moodier territory with a haunting, Horrors-y melodic line.

Review: Funky Kromong Vol. 2 builds on the success of its predecessor with another bold and bright selection of tracks by legendary Indonesian artist Benyamin Suaeb for Lamunai Records. This volume highlights Suaeb's genius for fusing traditional Betawi music with infectious funk grooves and witty satire. Tracks like 'Kompor Meleduk', 'Cong-Cong Balicong', and 'Koboi Ngungsi' capture his signature humour and cultural insight while offering fresh energy for new generations. The seamless blend of traditional and modern instruments results in a timeless soundscape that honours Indonesia's musical heritage. Vol. 2 is both a nostalgic tribute and a bold, joyful celebration of innovation.