LMK - Musical Garden (Soulbeats Records)
Yours truly got to know LMK, a singer from Annecy in the east of France, thanks to Dubmatix' 'The French Sessions' album on which she was featured in two songs.
Tiken Jah Fakoly - Racines (Barclay/Universal)
After 'L'Africain', 'African Revolution' and 'Dernier Appel', albums which signaled a return to his African roots, for 'Racines' Tiken Jah Fakoly returned to Jamaica where he once again collaborated with Sly & Robbie (see also 'Françafrique' and 'Coup De Gueule').
Oum - Zarabi (MDC/Lof Music)
Moroccan singer-songwriter Oum el Ghaït Benessahraoui, commonly known as Oum, blends western jazz and soul with gnawa and hassani rhythms.
Aptijt - Boeke En Andere Poku's + Oscar Harris - Soldiers Prayer En Andere Poku's (Top-Notch Music/Universal)
With Aptijt and Oscar Harris the Top-Notch Music label adds two big names to their excellent Sranan Gowtu series.
Daby Touré - Amonafi (Cumbancha)
Daby Touré (a cousin of brothers Ismael and Sixu Tidiane Touré, active since the end of 1970s as Touré Kunda), is a singer-songwriter of Mauritanian descent who's been living and working in the French capital for most of his life.
Junior Reid - The Living Legend (J.R. Productions)
Just over a decade after his last long player, 'Rasta Government', Junior Reid now presents 'The Living Legend', an album with a title creating high expectations he'd already announced on several occasions over the past few years.
The Souljazz Orchestra - Resistance (Strut Records)
For 'Resistance', already their fourth long player for Strut Records, Canadian band The Souljazz Orchestra this time spice their recipe of afrobeat, salsa, reggae and Ethio-jazz with influences from French-Caribbean genres like zouk and cadence, and with a song like 'Shock And Awe', a song celebrating people power with a title referring to the Bush-era military tactics, even a dose of Ivorian coupé-décalé.
Sabrina Malheiros - Equilibria 10th Anniversary Edition (Far Out Recordings)
With the reissue of 'Equilibria' Far Out Recordings celebrates the tenth anniversary of Sabrina Malheiros' debut album, a release that would become a milestone in the label's catalog.
Gypsy Kumbia Orchestra - Revuelta Danza Party (Self-published)
Combine the best of Balkan brass with influences from Afro-Colombian tradition; add to that some dancers and elements from the circus and you get Gypsy Kumbia Orchestra, a festive bunch of Canadians from Montreal, who with 'Revuelta Danza Party' are now also presenting their debut album.
Rhythmites - Integration (Bristol Archive Records)
As its name implies Bristol Archive Records normally focuses on the Bristol music scene, but for Rhythmites the label made a slight exception this time.
Anthony Cruz - Cruzing EP (Tad's Record)
As an appetizer for an album that should see the light in the near future, Anthony Cruz is presenting this 'Cruzing' EP containing six very promising sounding tracks.
Bixiga 70 - III (Glitterbeat Records)
Not wanting to make things more complicated as they should be, the members of Brazilian afrobeat band Bixiga 70 simply named their third long player 'III'.
Quarter Street - Quarter Street (HopeStreet Recordings)
The past few years, Australian bands like The Liberators or Shaolin Afronauts already offered us their take on the afrobeat genre, and Quarter Street is now doing the same for Nuyorican salsa dura.
Manwel T - Cosmic (Dubkey)
We already presented a number of Manwel Tabone's releases on previous occasions, but 'Cosmic' is actually the Maltese producer's first release for which he handled composing, instrumentation and production himself.
Tommy McCook - The Sannic Sounds Of Tommy McCook (Dub Store Records)
Amateurs of obscure Jamaican vinyl we can definitely recommend 'The Sannic Sounds Of Tommy McCook'.
Various Artists - African Artist In America (Rebel Sound Records)
'African Artist In America' is a compilation album allowing a number of African artists residing in the US to present themselves to the rest of the world.
Richie Campbell - In The 876 (Bridgetown Records/Chet Records)
For 'In The 876', Richie Campbell, the Portuguese answer to Gentleman (something to which the singer alludes to himself in 'Feels Like': ".
Various Artists - Reggae Anthology: King Jammy's, Roots Reality And Sleng Teng (17 North Parade/VP Records)
After producers like Winston Riley and Joe Gibbs, King Jammy now also gets his own 'Reggae Anthology'.
Nabil Baly Othmani - Tamgarth In (Reaktion Records)
'Tamgarth In' is a reissue of Nabil Baly Othmani's 2010 debut album, extended for the occasion with three bonus tracks.
Les Ambassadeurs - Rebirth (World Village/Harmonia Mundi)
The aptly titled 'Rebirth' hails the musical resurrection of one of Mali's most legendary super groups: Les Ambassadeurs du Motel.