this is an excerpt from the print edition of dirty linen magazine #98 (february /march 2002). the magazine is available on newsstands and by subscription.

Lo' Jo
Bohême de cristal
World Village/Harmonia Mundi 468002 (2001), U.S. release

French pop music has not had much of an international profile in recent years, except for such exceptions as Air, Daft Punk, Saint Germain, and Kid Loco. Lo' Jo, which is more in the tradition of Les Négresses Vertes, has a good chance of making it to this elite list as well. The group started almost 20 years ago but should not be confused with Lo Jai, a more traditional French group from that era. Lo' Jo, from rural France, has gone through 300 members or so since its beginnings, but Denis Pean, who has been called a Gallic Tom Waits (Serge Gainsbourg is another valid comparison), is still on board, as is fiddler and kora player Richard Bourreau. Pean sings in French, English, Arabic, and Spanish, and there are even a few songs in Creole and Fon, so making sense of the lyrics should not be considered de rigueur. The El Mourid sisters, who are of Berber origin, add stunning vocals of their own.
Lo' Jo's intricately arranged music is a seamless multicultural blend of chanson, gypsy music, North African vocals, free jazz, and Caribbean dub beats. For its latest album, the group went to a desert in Mali with English producer Justin Adams, but the label to which the group was signed went bankrupt, so the album, recorded in 1999, has now ended up as the first release on the new World Village label. The result is magnificent and worth the wait. Bohême de cristal features special guests on a few tracks, notably Tuareg singer Azawad and the Gangbé Brass Band from Benin. The Brass Band makes the group come across as an extremely sophisticated circus band, which is what the group has been at times in the past. Bohême de cristal is replete with surprises that are simply astounding, whether in the form of a dazzling accordion run, a talking drum, or any number of other musical treats.
— Paul-Emile Comeau
(Comeauville, NS, Canada)

Various artists
The Rough Guide to Americana
World Music Network RGNET 1080 (2001)

Compiled by Sylvie Simmons of MOJO magazine, The Rough Guide to Americana is a collection of music that will give even the unfamiliar listener an introduction to the world of honky-tonk, hillbilly, and cowpunk. Released by the World Music Network, this 20-song CD does not simply focus on the founding fathers of what many have coined "alternative country," but rather, it highlights those who are currently carrying the bright torch.
Dave Alvin, the Waco Brothers, Neko Case, The Gourds, and Split Lip Rayfield are a few of the more recognizable artists featured on this compilation. The mellow "Lost Highway" from hard-core troubadour Townes Van Zandt and Hazeldine's striking cover of Gram Parsons' "A Song for You" are sweet reminders that influences from the past have not been forgotten. The folk sounds of Oh Susanna, the dreamy pitch of Neal Casal, and the dark rural music of the Handsome Family are also included.
Not one of these artists will be found on MTV or VH1; in fact, most of them cannot even be heard on the radio. You will have to dig a little deeper and search a bit farther to get your hands on any of this music. However, with record in hand, you will become a supporter of an American music movement and be the envy of all your friends.
— Philip Bernhardt (Silver Spring, MD)

Various artists
Zydeco: Eh toi! The Language of New Orleans, Volume 5
Louisiana Red Hot LRHR 9105 (2001)
Various artists
Cajun: Allons Danser!
The Language of New Orleans, Volume 6
Louisiana Red Hot LRHR 9106 (2001)

The fifth volume in Louisiana Red Hot's "Language of New Orleans" series emphasizes the diverse dialects of zydeco, and it's unlike any other z-compilation on the market. There are old-school tracks from Keith Frank's Creole Connection with uncle Carlton wheezing away on fiddle that recalls the la-la era, as well as Lil' Malcolm throttling on Clifton Chenier's "Morning Train." Sunpie shows the juré influence, while the incessant chattering Zydeco Warriors and elder statesman Willis Prudhomme shine in the country zydeco department. There are also selections from Frank-produced projects, such as brother Brad Frank and JoJo Reed (who rides with a cool, reverberated soul-funk groove). From Houston, the present Mecca of zydeco, there are new-school selections from the scene's patriarch Step Rideau and thrilling envelope pusher J. Paul Jr. There's even a hot one from zydeco's best show band, Chubby Carrier, who always jams for his "party people." Cracklin' good stuff throughout, yeah, you right.
Unlike Zydeco, which was culled from nearly all Red Hot releases, much of Cajun comes from self-produced affairs not likely found in chain stores. Therein lies this collection's advantage: Artists not featured elsewhere are showcased, which provides a broader insight to Cajun music. There are grade AAA cuts from the talented teenage band Feufollet; the acoustic duo of Gina Forsyth and Waylon Thibodeaux, who are as danceable as any larger-piece band; and the strong, resonating voices of the Michot Brothers, who are long overdue for another recording. There are also tracks from New Orleans' vets LaTouche and Allen Fontenot, who have held their faithful crowds for decades. Interestingly enough, two tunes hail from beyond the bayous: Oregon's swamp rockers Kelly Thibodeaux & Etouffee and Washington State's traditional all-women's ensemble Les Femmes D'enfer (who do play like the flames of hell). If you are still into Cajun music after the passing burnt-fish fad, this one is worth checking out.
— Dan Willging (Denver, CO)

John Kirkpatrick
Mazurka Berserker
Fledg'ling FLED 3030 (2001)

Over the last 30 years, John Kirkpatrick has built a reputation as one of England's best squeezebox players. A master of button accordion, melodeon, and concertina, a skilled composer of tunes in traditional styles, and a strong singer to boot, he has worked over the years with groups that include the Albion Band, Steeleye Span, the Richard Thompson Band, and Brass Monkey, and has recorded numerous solo and session projects, as well. On Mazurka Berserker he joins with various old mates in a series of stylistically diverse and uniformly entertaining squeezebox-plus duos.
There are a couple of big arrangements of traditional ballads, like "There Stands a Cottage," a bouncy tale of rural romance accented by Bob Johnson's churning electric guitar, and "The Bold Keeper," a grimmer story of love hard won, where Kirkpatrick is joined by Nancy Kerr and James Fagan on fiddle and bouzouki. Fiddler Dave Swarbrick guests on "Nodrog's Woofing Waltz," a cheerful original tune named for Kirkpatrick's dog, and concertina master Alastair Anderson joins an overdubbed Kirkpatrick on a three-part canon with the delightful title "The Citröen Took Unleaded After All."
Two tracks are adapted for squeezebox from unconventional sources. Martin Carthy's distinctive guitar is Kirkpatrick's backup on the stately "The March of the Siamese Children," a familiar Richard Rodgers melody from The King and I, while the album's strangest track has to be a 16th-century German tune called "The Dance of the Jews," where an almost atonal accordion lead is backed by equally odd electric guitar riffs from Richard Thompson. Other guests include Scottish traditional singer Ray Fisher, who shares lead vocals on "The Song of the Weaver," a rousing millennial anthem that Kirkpatrick originally composed for a choir, and the venerable Hijaz Mustapha, who adds background wah-wahs from a Vietnamese lap steel guitar on the disc's title track. Aside from being a fine collection of accordion tunes, Masurka Berserker serves as a commendable overview of Kirkpatrick's button-pushing, bellows- squeezing career.
— Tom Nelligan (Waltham, MA)