Balkanarama
Black Sea
© 2002 Balkanarama
CD permanently out of stock. Sorry!
Balkan party music from a hot Seattle band. Less traditional than their first release, featuring modern instruments and two Balkan-flavored originals in English.
tracks
try this
albums you will love
genres you will love
galleries you will love
By Location
Recommended if you like ...
links
notes
We're a six-piece Seattle band playing party music from Southeastern Europe -- traditional songs plus a few originals in the same style. Our sound reminds some listeners of klezmer music with a double shot of Turkish coffee: intense, driving, heavily textured songs that make you want to get up and dance -- and our audiences always do!
Balkanarama's lineup includes alto sax, clarinet, violin, keyboards, electric guitar, electric bass and drums. Four of us sing in half a dozen Balkan languages.
We specialize in music of the Roma, or Gypsies, from Bulgaria, Macedonia, Albania and Serbia. We also play Balkan favorites from the '80s and '90s, including songs made popular by performers like Goran Bregovic and Slavi Trifonov. Our live performances feature wild, improvised instrumental solos in twisted rhythms like 7/8, 9/8 and 11/8, or the rhumba-like "cocek" beat that Rom stars have made popular worldwide.
We perform regularly at clubs and other events around the Puget Sound and have released two independently produced recordings: "Nonstop," a full-length CD, in 2000, and "Black Sea," a five-song EP, in 2002. Judith Gennett, reviewing "Black Sea" for the Columbia Gypsy Music Archive, wrote: "Their first album, Nonstop, features some great pan-Balkan music, but this new EP shows changes towards louder and more electric arrangements without sounding like a pop band. The most electric track is 'Entropy Time," an original Balkan-style song with shattering guitar and soaring fiddle backing English vocals by the sweet voice of Jody Levinson."
reviews
Please log in to review this album.
- author: Godelieve MONNET-PAQUET
GOOD CD! THANK YOU!
Another Masterpiece
author: Nadia BerzatiThe music keeps you wanting to dance. Wonderful vocals and instrumentation. Masterfully mixed and recorded. A true accomplishment.
Fabulous CD - Tracks are mesmerizing
author: Nadia BerzatiWonderful songs and music. Keeps you wanting more. I bought this CD with no regrets. Keep it up!!!!!!!!!!
Good
author: AntonJust wanted to add that I like also their version of an Easter European folk song with thier own lyrics in English. This would be track 3
Good!
author: AntonNot as good as their Nonstop album, but still very nice if you like what they do. My only remark is I wished there were more songs on the album. I really like tracks 2,4 and 5.