It's been a great year for World Music Network artists! Not only have Kristi Stassinopoulou & Stathis Kalyviotis, Sambasunda Quartet, and Krar Collective made it onto the WMCE charts at tenth, fourteenth and eighty-sixth places respectively, but Krar Collective are joint sixteenth in the 2012 fRoots Critics Poll - putting them equal with the likes of Bob Dylan and Ry Cooder! Kristi Stassinopoulou & Stathis Kalyviotis are also in the runners up for the critics poll, and Rough Guide To The Music Of Hungary is a runner up in the fRoots reissues and compilations chart. In addition to this, ‘Mapfunde’ by Monoswezi features on both fRoots' free download album and their new podcast! Their album The Villagewill be released on 28 January!
Each of these artists have also been nominated for a Songlines award! Read about it here, and then cast your vote!
Scroll down to listen to tracks by these fantastic artists!
Pioneers of reinvented folk, Kristi and Stathis remix traditional demotika songs to reflect their own experiences of urban life in Greece. A previous release by the acclaimed duo topped the World Music Chart for five months, and they are once again set to shake up the scene with Greekadelia: this is Greek folk as it has never been heard before.
They have made it to no. 10 on the WMCE charts, and are runners up for the fRoots Critics Poll!
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The Sambasunda Quintet create music of ethereal beauty centred on the kacapi, a traditional boat-shaped zither. Spacious and stripped down, deeply rooted in tradition, yet highly inventive – allow the sounds of Java to transport you to the Indonesian archipelago and beyond.
They have made it to No. 14 on the WMCE charts!
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Krar Collective serve up mind-blowing Ethiopian grooves on this excellent debut. Armed with their krar, kebero drums and stunning vocals, they have created Ethiopia Super Krar – an album rooted in tradition, and soaked with attitude.
They have made it to No. 86 on the WMCE charts, and are are joint 16 in the 2012 fRoots Critics Poll!
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