Alan Bishop was the bassist of The Sun City Girls, a legendary rock/experimental trio that had hundreds of releases, from rock covers, surf instrumentals, psychedelic freak-outs, puppetry, Asian-inspired theater, just to name a few excursions. From the absurd to the most magnificent, the unpredictability of The Sun City Girls made music fans either love or hate them, but never left anyone lukewarm.
Alan is also the co-founder of Sublime Frequencies, a label that releases music from all over the world in the tradition of Alan Lomax. The music that Sublime Frequencies releases is not for the pretty, easy-listening Sunday morning "world music" set.
Likewise, it's collections of international artists performing western pop covers would make any ethnomusicologist cringe, which makes me like them more.
Whether it's music from North Africa, pop covers from Thailand or wedding music from Syria, it's music that would leave most people from those regions scratching their heads wondering, "why would you like that?" I always find the exchange of regional music fascinating. Whether it's westerners getting down to Dabke, Germans dancing to Norteño or Japanese having Chicano oldies nights, once we are exposed to a wider palette of music it only serves to enrich our lives past the mundane. It becomes a springboard for the love of other cultures and a deeper appreciation of ones own culture as well.
Also joining us is the always-dope Son Zoo from the group Ethio-Cali, who is ready to unveil a mother lode of hypnotic dancefloor bangers from east Africa for your pleasure. Get ready for the madness!
