VARIOUS ARTISTS
Music of the Present Age: Compiled by Gira Mundo
(New World)

Japanese producer Gira Mundo is on a mission to deliver contemporary Brazilian music to the uninitiated. Music of the Present Age brings together current Brazilian acts with those from other nations influenced by samba, bossa nova, and tropicalia. The album launches with Eli Goulart’s upbeat take on “Sunny,” and runs from Kassin+2’s fleet bossa nova through the honey-voiced singer Luca Mundaca to David Villefort’s take on house music. Verdict: A slice of tropical sunshine for winter, and educational to boot. DG

X-PRESS 2
Makeshift Feelgood
(Sony Music Japan International)

Having learned from the success of their irrepressible single “Lazy,” British dance act X-Press 2 ditch their underground clubbing bona fides for out-and-out dance-pop. Makeshift Feelgood features guest vocalists on every song: Tim De Laughter of psychedelic indie group Polyphonic Spree on the dreamy “Witchi Tai To,” ’80s pop act Kissing the Pink for four tracks (including the appropriately accelerated “Enjoy the Ride”), and Anthony Roman of Radio Four adds a note of raunch to the electro workout “17.” This is a blatant bid for crossover success—and
a pretty good one at that. DG

EASY STAR ALL-STARS
Radiodread
(Beat)

Following up their innovative Pink Floyd tribute Dub Side of the Moon, New York reggae collective the Easy Star All-Stars are back with a paean to Radiohead’s OK Computer. Radiodread’s warm island vibes prove a comfortable fit for the man vs. machine message of OK Computer. Legendary singer Horace Andy’s once-ethereal voice sounds worse for wear, but Sugar Minnot, the Meditations and Israel Vibration are in fine form. The standout is Toots & The Maytals’ passionate take on “Let Down,” which shows the charismatic, Otis Redding-influenced Toots Hibbert still at the peak of his powers, and which may even outshine the original itself. DG

YURIKA OHYAMA
Kind Of Blue
(Sony)

Yurika Ohyama’s debut album has been a long time coming. Her beautiful first single “Umi no Ao Sora no Ao” was released in 2005, while sporadic follow-ups featuring her ethereal voice have been meticulously crafted slices of Okinawan pop. Now, Kind Of Blue is the antidote to factory formula J-pop that it promised to be. Pitched somewhere between the folky Rimi Natsukawa and the alternative Hajime Chitose, Ohyama’s pop is soft, elegant and dreamy. The only misstep is the pseudo-reggae “Where Is Your Mammy,” disrupting the flow between the tracks that bookend it, including the delightful closer “Anata ni.” Robert Poole



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