music

UKRAINE: Ukrainian Radio / Bayraktar

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Inhulets River at dawn – Source: Culture Trip

Radio Garden is really wild when you’re looking at an active warzone – unsurprisingly, radio stations where the active fighting are tend to be down, and further out, you can see the “propaganda line” between Russian and Ukrainian broadcasting. You can get a sense of the direction stations are taking by translating their websites, but I wish I had some knowledge of either language, I’m sure there’s some really strong content.

Radio Bayraktar – Named after the Turkish Bayraktar drones that have been so effective, this online station in Kyiv is almost totally Ukranian patriotic and propaganda songs – all genres, and even if you don’t understand Ukrainian, between the “Slava Ukrainia”s and the different remixes of the Bayraktar song (see below), you’ll get it. Listen live here.

Papino Radio 107.6 – The Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) is a Russian-backed breakaway state in the Donbas, and along with Luhansk and Crimea, form the parts of Ukraine that have been under Russian control since 2014. There’s about 2 million people living in the DPR, and of course, they have their own pro-Russian patriotic and propaganda radio. Most of it is the mirror of Radio Bayraktar – take a look at the Google translate of their social media. Listen live here.

Garmonia Mira – And now for something completely different! Based in Odesa, this quirky little station is a mix of jazz, classical, and easy listening, but with astrological reports built into its weather reports, scifi and poetry readings, and what I would call “granola Christian” programming – worship songs, “life-affirming” sermons, etc. It’s new to me to see it in an Eastern Orthodox content, but it’s 100% a thing. Good jazz selection too. Listen live here.

There’s also several stations that are just good dance/EDM mixes. In no particular order:

As for the Bayraktar, shortly after the Russian invasion stalled, a war song started circulating in Ukraine, celebrating the effectiveness of the Ukrainian military and Putin’s miscalculation in invading. It’s been remixed into a million different genres, including this really catchy dance mix by Andriy Muzob.

The full English translation is here, but a little example:

His own country wasn’t big enough / Now the invader has crossed our border / Their war machines have melted in the fields / Bayraktar

The senile old grandpa [Putin] is ranting / And the people believe everything / Now the Tsar has learned a new word / Bayraktar

Bayraktar English Translation

As far as war songs go, it’s a lot higher production value than “Hitler Has Only Got One Ball” that my grandpa taught me, but the sentiment is similar.


UKRAINE: Jungle in a castle / Ukrainian hardstyle

Kate , ,
The Crimson Room at Pidhirsti (1871) by Aleksander Gryglewski – Source

I’m adding to my list of DJ sets in unusual locations – first up a mountain in winter in Finland, then by a lake of liquid asphalt in Trinidad, now at an abandoned castle in Ukraine! Pidhirsti Castle dates back to the 1600s when the area around Lviv was part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. There’s some great drone shots of it in the video.

As for the set, it’s a really fire collab between Ukrainian DJs Nastia and Daria Kolosova – very heavy driving jungle / drum&bass, slightly industrial.

When you think of electronic music in Eastern Europe, hardstyle more often comes up (including hardbass, a subset that emerged in Russia, and is used in memes). Like metal, there’s fine-grained stylistic differences between genres – d&b is faster and syncopated, hardstyle is more harmonic and distorted, usually with vocals. Here’s a whole mix of hardstyle from Ukrainian musicians, in case you want to keep the dance party going.

ECUADOR: Podcasts

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Cotopaxi, seen from Quito – Source: Malcolm Surgenor

Like the month I covered Chile, I struggled to find a lot of Ecuadorian podcasts in English, and I unfortunately don’t speak Spanish. Mainly these are podcasts about Ecuador, but there’s some really interesting interviews (and music!) in here. Another good one that I included in my post about the Galapagos is Radiolab’s report on the islands.

The Voyages of Tim Vetter: Ecuadorian Food and Culture with Abel Castro – A good interview with Ecuadorian restaurateur Abel Castro – they go over Ecuadorian cuisine in all its regional glory, plus unique Ecuadorian ingredients like naranjillas. Castro is based in New York and also touches on how to provide real authentic Ecuadorian food to a North American audience without compromising it – Americans turn out to have a weird aversion to eating corn on the cob in a sit-down restaurant.

The New Yorker: A Pandemic Tragedy in Guayaquil – Ecuador was hit hard and hit early by the pandemic, with the news picking up stories of bodies in the street in Guayaquil. This reporting (in podcast and article form) by Peruvian-American journalist Daniel Alarcón covers the awful start of the pandemic in Ecuador, the bureaucratic and systemic breakdown, and the human toll. Thankfully, Ecuador has been able to mobilize an impressive vaccination campaign, but the disruption and increase in violence and crime has created new challenges.

NPR: The Lost Tapes Of Caife: A Vintage Ecuadorian Record Label Revived – An interview with Daniel Lofredo Rota, a musician and producer in Quito about his discovery of long-lost recordings from the 50s and 60s from his grandfather’s record studio, how he has become a musical archivist through this, and how this valuable look into Ecuador’s musical past influences his own music now. A playlist of some of the records is available on Soundcloud.

BBC: 1995 Peru-Ecuador Border War – A look back at the 1995 war, including old media excerpts and recollections from officers who fought in the final Peru-Ecuador war.

Feel the Night Podcast – A US-based Latin music DJ podcast, with specials focusing on Ecuadorian chicha. Chicha is the Andean name for cumbia: upbeat folk tunes and rhythms, mixed into dance music (it’s also a local corn beer). These are incredible workout playlists, it’s hard to run on the treadmill without wanting to dance. Check out Episodes 396, 272, 261, 191, and 134 for some great Ecuadorian jams.

ECUADOR: Nicolá Cruz – Colibria

Kate

A bit of Bjork, a bit of traditional South American vibes, and a lot of cool atmosphere from Ecuadorian DJ and musician Nicolá Cruz. There’s a great interview with him about his music, the creative process, and incorporating other sounds from the Global South.

Also, enjoy some smooth “Andean step” with Cumbia Del Olvido:

And if that tickles your fancy, here’s an hour-long set of his with some really slick downtempo electronic music:

ECUADOR: Clowning around in office

Kate , , ,

A few years back in 2015, comedian John Oliver got into a ridiculous spat with the President of Ecuador at the time, Rafael Correa. Correa’s extended, personal state of the nation addresses were not unique – Hugo Chavez pioneered them, but Correa’s were noteable for the President doxxing individual trolls on Twitter.

“The President of Ecuador has been shit-talking me on Twitter all week long.”

However, what really ticked off most Ecuadorians was the trash talk around Tiko Tiko, a beloved children’s entertainer and clown.

“It can’t be that international TV makes fun of such a prominent person … poor Tiko Tiko!” – Ecuadorian Tweet

BBC News: “Ecuadorians leap to clown’s defence after John Oliver skit”

From the comments, it seems Tiko Tiko’s solar system song holds the same place in people’s hearts as the Animaniacs’ Country Song does in North America.

As time is a flat circle, Tiko Tiko, aka Ernesto Huertas Carrillo, unsuccessfully ran for office in 2016 for the Socialist Party. He did register sans makeup, but petitioned to run under his stage name. I can’t guarantee the auto-translated auto-captioned subtitles are even remotely correct, but there’s something to do with aliens.

This month: ECUADOR

Kate ,

Last month I was learning about Gabon, now I’ve randomly pulled another country on the equator, that has thick forests, rich biodiversity, and oil reserves – Ecuador! So before I start this month, what do I know about Ecuador off the top of my head?

  • I know it’s a smaller Latin state in South America, sitting along the equator (hence the name), and that a lot of people there have mixed Spanish and Indigenous ancestry. The Andes run through the country and the capital Quito is one of the highest-elevation national capitals in the world. It’s generally a middle-income country with some oil reserves.
  • I know what’s now Ecuador was part of the Inca Empire, and also part of the larger Bolivarian independence movement from Spain, but I don’t know much more about those parts of history overall, or about their modern politics. It will also be interesting to see what similarities and differences there are with the other two Latin countries I’ve covered so far – Chile and El Salvador.
  • I know that the Galapagos Islands belong to Ecuador, which are famous for their unique biodiversity and Darwin’s studies of finches on those islands gave led him to the breakthrough on evolution in On the Origin of Species. I also know that one of the Galapagos Islands was the original home of Lonesome George, the last remaining member of his species of tortoise – who lived for about 100 years.
  • As for Ecuadorean cuisine, I know there’s definitely some overlap with Peruvian cuisine, and dishes like ceviche hail from this region, but I don’t know much more than that. I do know that almost all the world’s guayusa comes from Ecuador – it’s a caffeinated plant similar to yerba mate. I’ve had it before and I quite like it.
  • I know that guinea pig is sometimes eaten in Ecuador. I don’t think I’ll be able to give it a try here in Canada; in 2011 a Montreal man was taken to court for importing guinea pig meat from Peru. However, the trouble seems to be more a blanket ban at the time on importing any meat from that country, but a quick google doesn’t seem to bring up anything for sale today in Canada.
  • I know that like other South American countries, there’s a rich literary tradition in Ecuador, so I definitely want to see what’s been translated into English!

Honourable mention also goes to German band Sash! with their eurodance song Ecuador – it has nothing really to do with the country (it was filmed in Spain and bald eagles are from North America), but if you had told me it was the most 1997 tourism ad for the country, I would have believed you:

GABON: Gabonese Radio and TV

Kate , , , , ,
A surfing hippo near Port-Gentil – Source: Olivier Stocchi, TrekNature

I poked around Radio Garden and a few other sites to find some live radio from Gabon – there’s not a lot available, but there were a few neat channels.

Urban FM 104.5 – This has definitely been my favourite station, it’s great to put on when I’m working. Reggae, rap, hip hop, dance, pop – most of it Gabonese or from other parts of Africa. It’s a big fun mix. It’s pretty much uninterrupted music too! Listen live here.

Gabonews – The online feed isn’t up all the time, but it’s a major private radio station in Gabon. There’s a lot of variety – some news and talk in French, some pop and rap, and some more traditional Gabonese instruments – or “tradmodèrne” mixes. Listen live here.

Africa Radio – Africa Radio is notable for being a longstanding Gabonese institution that is no longer Gabonese. It was launched in 1980 as Africa No. 1, broadcasting out of Libreville, with French and Gabonese state investment. Africa No. 1 expanded into additional radio stations in Paris and Libya (with involvement from both Gaddafi and the post-Gaddafi governments). However, after strikes and complaints of poor working conditions, Africa No. 1 had its licence pulled and ceased broadcasting in Gabon in 2018. It has since been reborn as Africa Radio, with stations in Côte D’Ivoire and the Republic of Congo. You can listen live to regional broadcasting with music and talk in French, or music streams with club, rumba, and African dance music.

Notre-Dame de Lourdes, Libreville – Source

There’s a few live TV channels streaming from Gabon as well:

Gabon 24 – Gabon’s national broadcaster – formerly part of state broadcasting, now they’ve been spun off into a standalone company. They livestream on Youtube, and post individual clips from news stories on their channel. They’re still very much the state broadcaster, so they don’t really rock the boat, but there’s news, weather, sports, talk shows – the whole deal.

Gabonews – This is a private broadcaster, also with livestreams and clips from their broadcasts on Youtube. Again, a similar mix of news, weather, sports and talk, but an very interesting little difference: they also carry addresses by Jean Ping, the opposition leader who narrowly lost the 2016 election due to vote rigging in Ali Bongo’s home province. He’s positioned himself as a statesman, and continues to address the nation as the “Elected Gabonese President”.

GABON: Bwiti

Kate , , ,

Most focus on Bwiti seems to be a little superficial – a lot of media characterizes it as a “religion” and there’s a lot of attention from Western lenses on the fact that practices often include the psychedelic iboga root. But Bwiti is really more of a spiritual discipline focused on healing than a standalone religion – it’s flexible and syncretic and incorporates traditional elements of African spirituality, local medicinal plants, plus occasional elements from Christianity. If you speak French, here’s an interesting clip from a larger doc on Bwiti:

And in English, an interview with Moughenda, a Bwiti spiritual leader about the importance of self-knowledge and connection to nature, history, and culture, and why many people turn to Bwiti for healing.

Bwiti isn’t a practice that’s closed off, and there are many videos of initiations and healing ceremonies online. A lot of these vids try to play up the “exotic” lens, but this one below is pretty solid, including comments from practitioners themselves about what’s taking place and why:

Music is a big part of Bwiti ceremonies as well, and often features the ngombi harp and the ngongo mouth bow, plus percussion and singing. Here’s a couple good examples with beautiful complex polyrhythms and use of both male and female voices.

GABON: More podcasts

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Boulevard Triomphal, Libreville – Source

Some more podcasts from and about Gabon – language as marked!

The Talking Point: African Perspectives – Gabon (En) – If you’re looking to get your head around just the basics of Gabon, this South African podcast has a good interview with the head of a Gabonese ex-pat organization in the country. The interviewee wants to get more into the meat of the political struggles, but also wants to show Gabon well and promote the lovely things about it.

France Culture: Gabon, comment sortir de l’impasse? (Fr) – French analysis from 2016 during the contested election between Ali Bongo and Jean Ping – it covers the vote rigging, the violence, and the media blackout, but also covers the political history that lead up this, including France’s involvement in Gabon’s politics – all in 7 minutes.

Sky News ClimateCast: How do you put a price on nature? (En) – Gabon is one of the most forested countries and has some of the lowest levels of deforestation, making it not just a home for incredible biodiversity, but as a vital carbon sink. This makes Gabon is one of the few carbon-negative countries, taking in through its forests more carbon than it emits – even with an oil industry. However the podcast looks into Gabon’s economic choice over its forests as its oil reserves begin to run low – it could log the forests, or it could solicit investments from other countries to keep its forests intact. The question is if other countries will pay to stop Gabon from logging, and would this model work elsewhere?

RFI Couleurs tropicales – Sémaine Speciale Gabon Ep 1 (Fr) – The first episode of a multi-part series on RFI’s African music show focusing exclusively on music from Gabon and its diaspora. It’s more of a DJ set with a bit of interview clips and artist details mixed in (all the artist names are listed in the description). Really high energy and fun, with a host with a lot of national pride about Gabon’s music scene.

Urban FM: Mystères Urbains (Fr) – This is so much fun if you like spooky campy stuff, this Gabonese podcast covers urban legends, occult, and monsters from across the country. I listened to one on an urban legend of the “Devil’s Cat” – a lesson in kindness to animals that builds off superstitions around black cats.