Tribal Groove reviewed by Ben Ohmart: The Muse's Muse

Tribal Groove is yet another winning entry from the world beat label that is Music Mosaic. And never has a label name been more fitting. ‘The pulse of global harmony,’ their nickname, abounds in this hour’s worth of rhythmic pulse, blending ‘a moving, fresh and fascinating sound-journey’ with pretty much every corner of the World put into tight radio-length tracks.

If I had to pick among the apples and oranges, I would choose ‘Mongolia’ by Limborg as my favorite because it is somehow able to blend a smoothness to its shuffling groove, with an elegant female Chinese vocal at the front of it.

And therein lies the heaviest charm of Tribal Groove – its ability to relax at the same moment it tries to stir. And stir it does. But not by harsh house or overloading the senses with so many offshoot avenues and overdone mix that the music itself ceases to become clear. After all, your travels always work better when the destination is in sight.

From Africa to Australia and back to Native America, Tribal Groove moves with a sure precision that only a compilation album can muster. Every artist – 13 of ‘em – knows his/her own genre, and packages it in faultless trance or simple World music spiced up with enough rhythm to keep a Bee Gee happy. More than pleasant. Much more than that.

Tribal Groove reviewed by Dan Liss - New Age Voice Magazine

On Music Mosaic latest releases, they feature a few well known artists, (James Asher, Hamsafar, Karunesh, Professor Trance) and many lesser known (Keiya, Ganga Giri , Solace, Limborg/Barki, Mahmood Fadl, the Capitali$ts, Michael Reimann, Ariel Kalma) artists, thus serving the purpose that samplers are best suited for, introducing listeners to new material. The world music groove is powerful and the prevalent use of vocals on this CD really hikes up the intensity level. Once the music starts moving, the songs and chants in the aboriginal languages of Australia, North America, African, Mongolia, Tibet and the Middle East ring out with the pure emotional resonance of people who are using their voices to call to their fellow villagers and celebrate in the common spirit of a group ritual, rather than performers trying to create pop hits.

Since no specific information is provided in the liner notes, these voices may be samples or studio musicians imitating ethnic sounds. Whatever the exact origin of the voices, the effect is still powerful. Many listeners no doubt identify with the sheer authenticity of these sounds, which is why they take pleasure in listening to these languages they do not speak. This however, is not an anthropological field recording. It is a highly polished set of highly danceable grooves, set in motion by a combination of ethnic instruments, keyboards, synthesizers and contemporary instrumentation. Tribal Groove rocks from start to finish and will appeal to anyone looking for a set of dance beats with a primal punch