🔗 Share this article The Ten Finest Global Records of This Past Year Looking back on the musical landscape of global sounds that expanded horizons. Here is a countdown of ten notable albums that shaped the year in music. Number Ten: Sarathy Korwar – There Already Is Beauty The concept of a 40-minute, uninterrupted piece built on cyclical percussion may not appear the easiest musical proposition. But, south Asian percussionist and producer Sarathy Korwar turns this persistent pulse into a hypnotically captivating album. Leading an group of three drummers, Korwar develops a dense percussive language across the record's ten parts. His composition channels minimalist concepts from Steve Reich alongside Indian classical phrasing, everything tethered in the repetition of a ongoing, pulsing figure. The longer one listens, this refrain starts to mirror the ceremonial rhythm of devotional music, luring the listener further into Korwar's singular percussive world. 9. Yasmine Hamdan – I Forget, I Remember Coming off an hiatus of eight years, Arab vocalist and composer Yasmine Hamdan returns with a contemplative set of songs. It continues exploring the Arabic-language, dub-tinged style that cemented her status in the region's indie music scene since the 1990s. Hamdan's voice is quiet and thoughtful, delivering delicate melodies atop the bowing strings of a track like Hon and the rumbling trip-hop groove of Vows. For more upbeat numbers such as Shadia and Abyss, she adopts a quivering, longing vibrato against electronic lines with North African flavors and rattling electronic percussion. The production is sparse and understated, yet this minimalism provides the perfect environment for Hamdan's expressive songwriting to shine through. It is well worth the wait. 8. Debit – Desaceleradas Mexican producer Debit has a knack for haunting reworkings of archival audio. For her latest release, Desaceleradas, she zeroes in on the 1990s variant of cumbia rebajada – a slowed, dubby take of the shuffling Latin American dance music genre. Debit decelerates this sound down to a crawl, filtering its characteristic synths and syncopated rhythm via sheets of murk and noise to generate a new, menacing rhythm. At turns atmospheric and uneasy, Debit morphs the joyous party music of cumbia into a enduring, spectral memory. Number Seven: DJ K – Radio Libertadora! Maximalism is the defining principle for the music of Brazilian producer Kaique Vieira, AKA DJ K. Coining his own genre of "bruxaria" (witchcraft), Vieira stacks a tumult of sirens, pummeling bass tones and shouted lyrics over the classic Brazilian genre of baile funk. This captures the propulsive sound of neighborhood block parties. On his second album, Radio Libertadora!, Vieira escalates the intensity, incorporating everything from driving techno rhythms to samples of the Islamic call to prayer into his frantic bruxaria mix. The result is a especially hyperactive and overwhelmingly noisy 40-minute listening experience. Give in to the cacophony and Vieira's bold productions become unexpectedly liberating. Number Six: The Singer Mohinder Kaur Bhamra – Punjabi Disco Sikh devotional singer Mohinder Kaur Bhamra's 1982 album of disco music and Punjabi folk melodies is a rediscovered treasure. Recorded by her son, music producer Kuljit Bhamra, Punjabi Disco's ten tracks deliver an remarkably engaging blend of the synthetic sound of early synthesizers and programmed drums with her melismatic Indian classical vocal technique. Electronic percussion mirrors the wavelike tones of the traditional drums, while synth lines replicates the traditional sound of the harmonium on tracks such as Pyar Mainu Kar. At other times, Latin-inflected grooves comes to the fore on Soniya Mukh Tera, and Nainan Da Pyar De Gaya features a up-tempo disco bass groove. It's a club-ready hybrid created more than ten years before the Asian Underground explosion. 5. The Mongolian Artist Enji – Resonance Mongolian vocalist Enji's soft fourth album, Sonor, develops her jazz-influenced sound to deliver some of her broadest music yet. Departing from her background in traditional Mongolian "long song" singing, the record's selection of pieces travel from the soft Norah Jones-esque melodies of slow-burning number Ulbar to the German-language narration lyrics and twanging guitar lines of Unadag Dugui. The album also includes a sprightly, funk-tinged cover of the 80s Mongolian pop hit Eejiinhee Hairaar. Showcasing a ensemble rather than her standard setup of guitar and bass, Sonor's sound remains personal, inviting the listener into the warm soundscape of her unique voice. Number Four: Derya Yıldırım and Her Band – Yarın Yoksa Channeling the 1960s legacy of Turkish psychedelia established by groups such as Moğollar, Turkish-born, Germany-based singer Derya Yıldırım's new album with her band Grup Şimşek merges the metallic twang of the amplified traditional lute with woozy keyboard and soulful tunes. It's a nostalgic vibe grounded in Yıldırım's strong falsetto and shaped by producer Leon Michels' warm, tape-saturated aesthetic. Yet, on classic Turkish songs such as the nursery rhyme Hop Bico and 1960s song Ceylan, the group finds vibrant new territory. They develop smooth, slow-burning grooves and powerful vocals that give a novel, unconventional twist to the Turkish psych sound. Number Three: Lido Pimienta – La Belleza Catholic requiem mass music, Eastern European folk melodies and orchestral strings merge on Colombian singer Lido Pimienta's remarkable latest work. Arranging music for the 60-piece Medellín Philharmonic Orchestra, Pimienta and producer Owen Pallett explore a vast range including the Gregorian chants of opener Overturn (Obertura de la Luz Eterna) to the dramatic counterpoint melodies of Aún Te Quiero and the syncopated dembow rhythms of the woodwind-heavy El Dembow del Tiempo. Yet, it is Pim
Looking back on the musical landscape of global sounds that expanded horizons. Here is a countdown of ten notable albums that shaped the year in music. Number Ten: Sarathy Korwar – There Already Is Beauty The concept of a 40-minute, uninterrupted piece built on cyclical percussion may not appear the easiest musical proposition. But, south Asian percussionist and producer Sarathy Korwar turns this persistent pulse into a hypnotically captivating album. Leading an group of three drummers, Korwar develops a dense percussive language across the record's ten parts. His composition channels minimalist concepts from Steve Reich alongside Indian classical phrasing, everything tethered in the repetition of a ongoing, pulsing figure. The longer one listens, this refrain starts to mirror the ceremonial rhythm of devotional music, luring the listener further into Korwar's singular percussive world. 9. Yasmine Hamdan – I Forget, I Remember Coming off an hiatus of eight years, Arab vocalist and composer Yasmine Hamdan returns with a contemplative set of songs. It continues exploring the Arabic-language, dub-tinged style that cemented her status in the region's indie music scene since the 1990s. Hamdan's voice is quiet and thoughtful, delivering delicate melodies atop the bowing strings of a track like Hon and the rumbling trip-hop groove of Vows. For more upbeat numbers such as Shadia and Abyss, she adopts a quivering, longing vibrato against electronic lines with North African flavors and rattling electronic percussion. The production is sparse and understated, yet this minimalism provides the perfect environment for Hamdan's expressive songwriting to shine through. It is well worth the wait. 8. Debit – Desaceleradas Mexican producer Debit has a knack for haunting reworkings of archival audio. For her latest release, Desaceleradas, she zeroes in on the 1990s variant of cumbia rebajada – a slowed, dubby take of the shuffling Latin American dance music genre. Debit decelerates this sound down to a crawl, filtering its characteristic synths and syncopated rhythm via sheets of murk and noise to generate a new, menacing rhythm. At turns atmospheric and uneasy, Debit morphs the joyous party music of cumbia into a enduring, spectral memory. Number Seven: DJ K – Radio Libertadora! Maximalism is the defining principle for the music of Brazilian producer Kaique Vieira, AKA DJ K. Coining his own genre of "bruxaria" (witchcraft), Vieira stacks a tumult of sirens, pummeling bass tones and shouted lyrics over the classic Brazilian genre of baile funk. This captures the propulsive sound of neighborhood block parties. On his second album, Radio Libertadora!, Vieira escalates the intensity, incorporating everything from driving techno rhythms to samples of the Islamic call to prayer into his frantic bruxaria mix. The result is a especially hyperactive and overwhelmingly noisy 40-minute listening experience. Give in to the cacophony and Vieira's bold productions become unexpectedly liberating. Number Six: The Singer Mohinder Kaur Bhamra – Punjabi Disco Sikh devotional singer Mohinder Kaur Bhamra's 1982 album of disco music and Punjabi folk melodies is a rediscovered treasure. Recorded by her son, music producer Kuljit Bhamra, Punjabi Disco's ten tracks deliver an remarkably engaging blend of the synthetic sound of early synthesizers and programmed drums with her melismatic Indian classical vocal technique. Electronic percussion mirrors the wavelike tones of the traditional drums, while synth lines replicates the traditional sound of the harmonium on tracks such as Pyar Mainu Kar. At other times, Latin-inflected grooves comes to the fore on Soniya Mukh Tera, and Nainan Da Pyar De Gaya features a up-tempo disco bass groove. It's a club-ready hybrid created more than ten years before the Asian Underground explosion. 5. The Mongolian Artist Enji – Resonance Mongolian vocalist Enji's soft fourth album, Sonor, develops her jazz-influenced sound to deliver some of her broadest music yet. Departing from her background in traditional Mongolian "long song" singing, the record's selection of pieces travel from the soft Norah Jones-esque melodies of slow-burning number Ulbar to the German-language narration lyrics and twanging guitar lines of Unadag Dugui. The album also includes a sprightly, funk-tinged cover of the 80s Mongolian pop hit Eejiinhee Hairaar. Showcasing a ensemble rather than her standard setup of guitar and bass, Sonor's sound remains personal, inviting the listener into the warm soundscape of her unique voice. Number Four: Derya Yıldırım and Her Band – Yarın Yoksa Channeling the 1960s legacy of Turkish psychedelia established by groups such as Moğollar, Turkish-born, Germany-based singer Derya Yıldırım's new album with her band Grup Şimşek merges the metallic twang of the amplified traditional lute with woozy keyboard and soulful tunes. It's a nostalgic vibe grounded in Yıldırım's strong falsetto and shaped by producer Leon Michels' warm, tape-saturated aesthetic. Yet, on classic Turkish songs such as the nursery rhyme Hop Bico and 1960s song Ceylan, the group finds vibrant new territory. They develop smooth, slow-burning grooves and powerful vocals that give a novel, unconventional twist to the Turkish psych sound. Number Three: Lido Pimienta – La Belleza Catholic requiem mass music, Eastern European folk melodies and orchestral strings merge on Colombian singer Lido Pimienta's remarkable latest work. Arranging music for the 60-piece Medellín Philharmonic Orchestra, Pimienta and producer Owen Pallett explore a vast range including the Gregorian chants of opener Overturn (Obertura de la Luz Eterna) to the dramatic counterpoint melodies of Aún Te Quiero and the syncopated dembow rhythms of the woodwind-heavy El Dembow del Tiempo. Yet, it is Pim