Better known for their Ethio-jazz output, the new 45 from Pyramid Blue delivers an Afro-funk beast (with the emphasis more on the funk than the Afro) entitled Amal that is full of eastern promise due to the inclusion of Arab singer Habiba Chaouf who pulls off a haunting turn on the mic. Over on the flip it’s all about La Esperanza, slower and altogether more cinematic but no less haunting and no less full of eastern flavour. Largely instrumental (though it does feature a brief bit of spoken – possibly from Chaouf again) it has all the sinuousness of a camel train winding its way across a desert in the midst of a druggy haze. Another top score for Rocafort Records sublabel Discos Martos then, which recently released the rather good Glen Anthony Henry 45, Thankful.
(Out 14 March on Disco Martos)
