Tribal

Mandingo Griot Society

Styles: Griot Music, Mande Music, Afro-Jazz

Moods: Uplifting, Earthy, Sunny, Communal, Dance, Joyful, Passionate, Peaceful, Playful, Ritualistic, Spiritual, Warm, Tribal, Utopian

Musical Qualities: Percussive, Polyrhythmic, Acoustic, Melodic, Technical

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Dengue Dengue Dengue – Zenit & Nadir

Styles: Digital Cumbia, Organic Beat Music, Psychedelic Electronic

Moods: Brooding, Earthy, Intertwined, Shadowy, Dancing, Determined, Tribal, Complex, Mystical, Hypnotic, Mechanical, Ominous, Rootsy, Haunting, Dark, Knotted, Mysterious, Ritualistic, Futuristic

Musical Qualities: Polyrhythmic, Percussive, Loops, Progressive, SpokenWord, Electro-Acoustic, Sampling

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The Art Ensemble of Chicago – Bap-Tizum

Style: Avant-Garde Jazz, Modern Creative, Spiritual Jazz, Free Jazz

Moods: Ritualistic, Passionate, Cathartic, Open, Colorful, Visceral, Warm, Communal, Free, Abstract, Chaotic, Exploratory, Responsive, Tribal, Spiritual

Musical Qualities: Collective Improvisation, Percussive, Suite, Live, Dynamic, Polyphonic, Group Vocals

Instrumentation: Trumpet, Flugelhorn, Kelphorn, Bass Drum, Percussion, Saxophones (Alto, Soprano, Sopranino, Tenor, & Bass), Clarinet, Drums, Alto Flute, Conga, Vibraphone, Upright Bass, Electric Bass, Log Drum, Gong, Whistle, Bass Marimba

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Helena Espvall & Masaki Batoh – Overloaded Ark

Style: Progressive Folk, Acid Folk, Psychedelic Chamber Music

Moods: Mysterious, Exploratory, Medieval, Mystical, Ancient, Brooding, Forest, Haunting, Serpentine, Ritualistic, Cinematic

Musical Qualities: Complex, Dense, Acoustic, Progressive, Percussive, Noisy, Improvisation

Instrumentation: Cello, Acoustic & Electric Guitars, Organ, Sho, Banjo, Renaissance Harp, Rauschpfeife, Crumhorn, Cornamuse, Hurdy Gurdy, Electronics, Darbuka, Riq, Frame Drum, Percussion, Recorder, Piano, Vocal Harmonies

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Medicine Singers

Featured Musicians: Joe Rainey, jaimie branch, Laraaji, Thor Harris, Ryan Olsen, Ikue Mori

Style: Algonquian & Pocasset Powwow Music, Neo-Psychedelia

Moods: Ceremonial, Communal, Cathartic, Colorful, Spiritual, Intense, Tribal, Ritualistic

Musical Qualities: Percussive, Chants, Collage, Electro-Acoustic, Rhythmic

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Björk – Fossora

Styles: Progressive Pop, Post-Industrial Chamber Music, IDM, Gabber, Deconstructed Club

Moods: Earthy, Knotty, Sensual, Futuristic, Surreal, Romantic, Mystical, Passionate, Messy, Hallucinogenic, Intense, Forest, Eccentric, Epic, Tribal

Musical Qualities: Polyphonic, Dense, Dynamic, Complex, Glitchy, Progressive, Uncommon Time Signatures, Electro-Acoustic

Instrumentation: Digital Programming, Woodwinds (Bass Clarinet, Oboe, Clarinet), Strings, Choral Vocals

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African Head Charge – My Life in a Hole in the Ground

LP, On-U Sound Records (1981/2016 RE) Styles: Industrial Dub, African Folk Music, Psychedelic Electronic Moods: Mysterious, Nocturnal, Earthy, Spiritual, Surreal, Tribal, Mechanical, Dark, Hypnotic, Groovy, Exploratory, Psychedelic, Woozy Musical Qualities: Percussive, Polyrhythmic, Studio-as-an-instrument, Repetitive, Loops My Life In A Hole In The Ground by African Head Charge

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Osjan – Roots

Style: Free Folk, Organic Music, Progressive Folk, Psychedelic Chamber Music

Moods: Ritualistic, Ancient, Flowing, Tribal, Earthy, Communal, Hypnotic, Intertwined, Medieval, Mysterious, Mystical, Nocturnal

Musical Qualities: Percussive, Collective Improvisation, ?Acoustic, Suite, Thematic, Progressive, Atmospheric, Repetitive

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Holden – The Inheritors

Style: Progressive Electronic, IDM, Microhouse

Vibe: Ancient, Tribal, Ritualistic, Pagan, Brooding, Mythic, Cold, Visceral, Mechanical, Hypnotic, Driving, Epic, Focused, Mysterious, Mystical, Patient, Powerful, Suspenseful, Earthy

Musical Qualities: Repetitive, Distorted, Heavy, Rhythmic, Percussive, Loops, Dissonant, Dense, Instrumental, Pulse, Noisy, Progressive, Field Recordings, Sampling

Instrumentation: Bodhrán (Irish Frame Drum), Synthesizers, Drum Machine, Saxophone, Organ, Chanting, Melodeon (Pump Organ), Electric Guitar, Electric Bass, Xylophone, Live Electronics

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Between – And the Waters Opened

Style: Psychedelic Chamber Music, Kosmische Musik, Ritual-Folk, Global Fusion

Vibe: Spiritual, Meditative, Communal, Psychedelic, Earthy, Forest, Ritualistic, Tribal

Musical Qualities: Acoustic, Atmospheric, Chamber, Droney, Raga, Percussive, Chants

Instrumentation: Oboe, Keyboards, Conga, Acoustic Guitar, Bamboo Flute

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Sunburned Hand of the Man – Fire Escape

The free-form psychedelia and tribal “group therapy” of Sunburned Hand of the Man are in great hands with producer Kieran Hebden (Four Tet)—his dubs and cuts transform their usually lo-fi, meandering jams into something much more immediate, without losing any of their exploratory and spontaneous energy. Recommended for fans of polyrhythmic Afro-inspired percussion, dubbed out production, communal sound rituals, and dense psychedelia.

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Spaza – Spaza

“There is a heightened and sustained sense of intuition running through this recording whose sonic palette is so wide it captures – through soundscaping, invocation, lament, impressionistic vocal weaving – not only the transient and hybridised nature of life in Johannesburg, but also the heaviness of the air at the time of its recording. More ambient, controlled swirl of rhythm and experimental mixing than incessant groove, the album is an outpouring of a range of expressions that exist between the supposed binaries of indigenous forms of music and the electronic experimentation Johannesburg is known globally for.” (from Bandcamp)

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The Sea Ensemble – We Move Together

An obscure release from the great creative label ESP-Disk, containing exploratory, mysterious and playful improvisations from The Sea Ensemble—the husband/wife duo of Zusaan Fasteau and Donald Rafael Garrett. While they are both trained musicians and multi-instrumentalists, an uninhibited childish spirit permeates this release, as can be seen in Donald’s crude but visionary cover drawing; Yet the recording also feels imbued with ancient wisdom, as heard in their primal and instinctive vocalizations throughout the album

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Third Ear Band – Alchemy

Style: Free Folk, Chamber Music, Progressive Folk

Vibe: Ritualistic, Hypnotic, Earthy, Tribal, Nature, Meditative, Medieval, Exploratory

Musical Attributes: Acoustic, Improvisation, Instrumental, Minimalistic

Instrumentation: Oboe, Violin, Viola, Recorder, Percussion (Tabla, Drums, Chimes), Cello

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Senyawa – Sujud

Style: Doom-Folk, Indonesian Folk Music, Avant-Folk

Moods: Apocalyptic, Spiritual, Earthy, Dark, Ominous, Nocturnal, Ritualistic, Tribal, Hypnotic

Musical Qualities: Throat Singing, Homemade Instruments, Droney, Noisy, Electro-Acoustic, Repetitive, Dense, Heavy

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