Best World Music Albums of 2009 So Far (Including Imports)*

*A word of explanation about this list: while the majority of my picks can be called world music, a couple of them (Emmy the Great, Little Boots) are imports which don't necessarily fall into the world music category. I'm including them here because: 1) they've been released in another country, and 2) I couldn't resist sharing them (seriously, they're that good).  But keep in mind that you probably won't find either of these artists categorized under world music in our music or MP3 stores.

 

1. Coeur de Pirate, Coeur de Pirate (CD)

I practically swooned the first time I heard this tiny, tattooed French-Canadian chanteuse.  With a voice like honey, Coeur de Pirate ("Heart of a Pirate"), otherwise known as 19-year-old Béatrice Martin of Quebec,  has crafted a rich, whimsical, and utterly stirring debut album imbued with a vein of nostalgia and maturity that far belies her years.  While songs on the album are driven primarily by Martin’s magical piano playing, Martin weaves in string arrangements, horn interludes, and accordion accompaniment with a thoughtful, nuanced touch.  Each melody is as finely crafted as spun silk.

The album sounds like it could have been made in 1920's France or used in the soundtrack to the film Amélie.  The buoyant “Ensemble” (“Together”) makes me feel like dancing down the street, while the pensive “C’était Salement Romantique” (“It Was Terribly Romantic”) fills me with longing for something that I can't quite define.  Listen and imagine yourself wandering the winding, cobbled streets of some old European city.  You don’t have to understand French to love this album.

If you can't see the embedded video player above, click here to watch a YouTube video of Coeur de Pirate performing "C'etait Salement Romantique."

2. Issa Bagayogo, Issa Remixed (MP3)

I was blown away when I first heard Issa Bagayogo’s Issa Remixed.  Rarely have I heard West African music infused with house-style dance rhythms so successfully—and so infectiously.  Originally from Mali, Issa grew up playing the ngoni (a three-stringed lute popular in West Africa), but rather than sticking to traditional music, he’s infused his albums with elements of jazz, dub, and funk.  Hybrid albums like this can often go wrong, but Issa’s compositions are masterfully done, and Issa Remixed is no exception.  Who knew that West African chord structures could mesh so well with electronica and sound so natural?

3. Emmy the Great, First Love (CD | MP3) 

I never would have expected the artist behind one of my favorite folk albums to be from London--a city that I tend to associate more with sassy britpop (think Lily Allen, Kate Nash) or alternative rock (think Coldplay).  But with a soaring, lyrical voice that hearkens back to the ‘60s, Emmy the Great (Emma-Lee Moss) is the real deal—with a twist.  Yes, her music is folk, but she's anything but traditional.  Witty and sarcastic, she probes into heavy subjects (death, pregnancy) and offers up world-weary and frequently biting social commentary couched in that smooth, magnetic voice of hers.  This is folk music with a thoroughly modern edge--or, perhaps, folk music for the 21st century.

4. Mariza, Terra (CD | MP3)

Reigning fado queen Mariza doesn’t disappoint with her fourth studio album.  No fado album is complete without heavy doses of Portuguese guitar—and this album has it in spades—but Mariza also experiments with other musical styles without straying too far from her musical roots.  She sets her marvelously flexible vocals to blues and jazzy piano, succeeding at the difficult task of offering up a thoroughly refreshing take on this most traditional and stylized of musical genres.    

5. Little Boots, Hands (CD)  

If you’re into dance music, you’ve probably already heard of Little Boots, a.k.a. 25-year-old Victoria Hesketh of England.  A multitalented musical dynamo, Little Boots made a name for herself by posting YouTube videos in which she performed her own original compositions and covered other popular songs.  Not only does she sing, she also plays the keyboard, the piano, the stylophone, and the very cool electronic Tenori-on—sometimes all at the same time.  With an astute ear and a flair for making multilayered rhythms irresistibly catchy, Little Boots merits the buzz that she’s generated.  She’s a serious musician taking electro-pop seriously, and the result is a dance enthusiast's delight, especially welcome in a genre that is sometimes considered too commercial to be "real." 

If you can't see the embedded video player above, click here to watch a YouTube video of Little Boots performing "Meddle."

--Bri Nguyen

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