NY Times,
CD Review
>>
Chalk up a new African-American blend: the Ethiopian-New York hybrids of Bole 2 Harlem on its debut album, “Volume 1” (Sounds of the Mushroom). Maki Siraj raps gruffly in Amharic; David Schommer produces tracks that touch on everything from reggae to North African rai to Pakistani qawwali, with invaluable help from a female Ethiopian singer, Tigist Shibabaw. (Bole 2 Harlem is named after Bole International Airport in the capital, Addis Ababa.) Songs like “Hoja Hoye,” “Ensaralen Gojo” and “Ametballe” mesh Ethiopian modes and rhythms with crisp hip-hop loops, adding up to irresistible party chants. Sample them at bole2harlem.com. 11/05/06
>> go there
|