Music From Around the World

By Kathryn McClintock

Photography by needpix.com

Artist: Traffik Island

Album: “Sweat Kollecta’s Peanut Butter Traffik Jam”

Favorite Track: “Charlie is My Darling” 

“Sweat Kollecta’s Peanut Butter Traffik Jam'' is a fun, flippant album that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The songs are short bursts of sound and melody, which accomplish what they were there to do before fading into something new. 

If you took seventies cop show music, the soundtrack for “Stranger Things,” and some lo-fi hip hop, and put it in the blender, it might come out something like this album—but not before you add the recorded snippets of dialogue from luminaries such as Bob Ross.

“SKPBTJ” is definitely all over the place, but in a really fun and vibrant way. Released on Feb 21, it’s one of the newest albums heading out from Flightless Records in Melbourne, Australia. Give it a listen when you need something perky to clean out your ears!

Artist: Vieux Farka Touré

Album: “Samba”

Favorite Track: “Ba Kaitere”

If you’ve ever heard of Ali Farka Touré, you might be excited to listen to this album already. Vieux Farka Touré is the son of that famous Malian musician, and brings his own energy and skill to the genre. His instrumental work is paralleled only by his vocal prowess. 

“Samba” is more than serious and locked-in, it’s fun and energetic. It has strength and longevity. Each track is longer than we might be used to in the western hemisphere, but the way the song’s repetition is made interesting throughout is fascinating. 

Musicians from Africa are gaining more and more recognition around the world, and for good reason. We have been cut off from beautiful music traditions for too long, and the beginning of our recuperation starts with music like this.  

Artist: Aaberg

Album: “Jynx”

Favorite Track: “Oblinski”

Aaberg’s albums all sound fairly similar, but if you like what he’s putting out, that’s not much of a problem. This music from across the pond is relaxing, subtle, and features some omnipresent bass riffs that give the music an otherworldly lift. The vocals are whispery, like someone’s right in your ear. 

I find this music great to study to. One YouTube commenter likened it to watching rain out of a glass window, and I think that’s a great analogy. What Aaberg lacks in a strong groove and loud strains he makes up for in style and restraint. 

You can find the album in full on YouTube, or listen to it on Aaberg’s Bandcamp. The accessibility and subliminal nature of the music makes it my go-to in the library. “Jynx” is a short, thirty minute adventure that can make any day better.