Kairo

Jonah Sharp's second proper album keeps much of the atmospheric beauty of Sea Biscuit intact, but the material usually works only as an introduction to devastating beat work on tracks like "Kairo" and "Funkyar," both of which recall the chunkier side of jungle and electro quite convincingly. All in all, Emit Ecaps is a fascinating fusion of hard and soft.

French avant-prog unit Art Zoyd formed in 1969 around the core of bassist Thierry Zaboitzeff, percussionist Jean-Pierre Soarez, and violin player Gérard Hourbette, with guitarist Rocco Fernandez, pianist Patricia Dallio, percussionist Daniel Denis (who later formed Univers Zero), and a changing lineup of half-a-dozen additional instrumentalists. In 1975, Zaboitzeff took over the group and changed its musical direction. The personnel would be narrowed to include two violins, electric bass, and trumpet, as evidenced by their debut full-length, Symphonie Pour le Jour Ou Bruleront les Cités, self-released in 1976. Its reception won them an opening slot on a tour with Magma. Released in 1979, Musique Pour l'Odyssée marked their debut on France's Atem Records and expanded the studio lineup to include saxophone, cello, viola, percussion, oboe, and bassoon. That same year, Art Zoyd joined the Rock in Opposition movement (founded by Chris Cutler), which also included Univers Zero, Henry Cow, Art Bears, Samla Mammas Manna, Stormy Six, and three others.

The violinist Ara Malikian (Lebanon, 1968) has a new album, quite different from everything he has recorded so far. "Royal Garage" is the title chosen to name a double album in which for the first time he dares to sing and in which he has surrounded himself with a large group of national and international artists such as Andrés Calamaro, Enrique Bunbury , Estrella Morente, Franco Battiato, Kase O, Pablo Milanés and Serj Tankian, from System of a Down. Malikian picks up the violin on all subjects to bring his sensibility. as we are used to, although on this occasion the audience to which it is addressed is not that of the Royal Albert Hall or the Royal Theater of Madrid. although you can also get in this more popular record that listeners hold their breath, enthralled by the virtuosity of this genius of the rubbed strings: "It's a lot of things but all with my own vision. There is flamenco, tango, rock, classical, jazz. … that of Serj Tankian is directly heavy. But none in the traditional way. It's all my way, with wonderful companions who have lent themselves to help me, "explains the artist.