Albaluna – Ennead (West Wave Production, 2024)

Albaluna is one of my favorite Portuguese bands. Their unconventional mix of Iberian folk, world music and a powerful rock element immediately captivates you. Their latest album Ennead continues his captivating exploration of music from diverse traditions from around the world.

Although Mediterranean music remains present, their fusion of progressive rock and world music crosses many borders. More specifically, the band’s music travels to the Middle East, Anatolia, historical Persia, and Central and South Asia, following the path of the ancient Silk Road.

As for musical instruments, the band skillfully uses a wide range of instruments from different traditions, from Europe to the Silk Road, sometimes intertwined in unusual ways. In fact, Albaluna’s sound is characterized by the use of fiery hurdy-gurdy, violins, guitar, lutes, global percussion and a rocking rhythm section with electric bass and drums.

Musicians: Ruben Monteiro on vocals, hurdy-gurdy, bağlama, guitar; Raquel Monteiro on vocals, violin, medieval vielle; Dinis Coelho on jembe, darbuka, dahola, bendir, riq; Christian Marr on vocals, bass, bouzouki; Carla Costa on tin whistle, bagpipes, ney; and Tiago Santos on drums.

Buy Ennead.

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Author: Angel Romero

Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts have included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a group of DJs and writers from around the world that celebrates global sounds. In addition, he has ventured into the recording business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have been released on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.