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UMALALI
The Garifuna Women's Project Cumbancha ****

Following the untimely death of Andy Palacio, who released a superb CD in 2007 celebrating the hip- swivelling gorgeousness of the African-Amerindian Garifuna communities of Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras, this is a wonderful, emotionally charged companion piece, featuring an all-female cast drawn from the same Caribbean sources. The vocals are startling - in a good way. Travelling a frequency more usually associated with the jews harp or the harmonica, these women carve a juicy route through tales of family and geography. The images are drawn straight from the most scintillating adventure stories of our childhood: Uruwei (The King) and Lubübüri Sigala (Hills of Tegucigalpa). All of this sits on top of the most languourous rhythms, leaving just enough room for individual instruments to shine through. An otherworldly thing of beauty. www.cumbancha.com

Download tracks: Yündüya Weyu, Hattie