Introspective cello in Mexico, rich South African jazz and a Malian master’s marriage of kora with symphonic orchestration were among the year’s highlights
Bahraini experimental producer Sarah Haras meanders between ambience and aggression on Mirage, warping the distinctive oud melodies of Khaliji folk music within thick waves of distortion and shimmering, abstracted vocal patterns. The result encloses the listener in a trance-like sound bath that almost crosses into dancefloor catharsis.
