Songlines

Songlines is the definitive magazine for world music – music that has its roots in all parts of the globe, from Mali to Mexico, India to Iraq. Whether this music is defined as traditional, contemporary, folk or fusion, Songlines is the only publication to truly represent and embrace it. However, Songlines is not just about music, but about how the music fits into the landscape; it’s about politics, history and identity, and the artists who incite change through their music. Through its extensive articles and reviews, Songlines is your essential guide to an extraordinary world of music and culture, whether you are starting on your journey of discovery or are already a seasoned fan.

Songlines

Cry of Love

CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE INCLUDE

TOP OF THE WORLD • On this issue’s compilation – our curated selection of new music and bonus tracks from across the globe

Prime Time • Yves Lambert is celebrating half a century of making music by continuing to push the boundaries of Québécois folk. “I’m more and more experimental”, he confides

THE GLOBE AT A GLANCE

Never Forget • A new play about the Peterloo massacre took centre stage at Manchester Folk Festival

Lagon Nwar • Meet a feverish quartet tying a knot between jazz, psych, maloya and Burkinabé music

TO THE MOON & BACK #3 • Vincent Moon presents The Sounds of Abkhazia, a suite of ten films recorded in the contested state of Abkhazia

I’m With Her • I’m With Her’s Sara Watkins talks about the trio’s creative bond and the theme of generational connection that underpins their new album

ARGENTINE TENSIONS • Censorship leads to a public spat between Argentine artists and the government

SOUNDCHECK • The Songlines team are currently listening to…

A Starry Night in Cuba • 1950s Havana comes alive as a new immersive cabaret and music experience comes to the capital

The 4 Corners and Centre of Dawn Landes’ Universe • Ahead of a UK tour performing The Liberated Woman’s Songbook, the North Carolina singer-songwriter talks us through five formative albums

File Under Jazz? • One of the world’s largest jazz gatherings gets its audience wondering whether it’s the jazz that they came for…

BRIEFINGS

Rebel Up! Records

Kingston, Jamaica • Attendees of the Island Music Conference discuss the legacy of Jamaica’s golden era during Reggae Month

WOMEX 2025 IN TAMPERE • WOMEX is heading to Finland’s ‘most musical city’ for its 2025 edition

Guru Nanak’s Day of Peace • A whole day (April 6) was spent celebrating Guru Nanak, culminating in a five-hour concert organised by Darbar Festival, who have recently begun a partnership with the Barbican Centre

Borderless Futures • Masa Nazzal returned from the Bosnian-Croatian border with an archive of sounds and stories that became a new way of understanding the world. “Listening [is] like a hand that reaches out”, she reflects

Amadou Bagayoko (1954–2025) • Half of Mali’s much-loved and hugely successful Amadou & Mariam

Pongsri Woranuch (1939–2025) • Queen of luk thung

SIMON SAYS… • Simon Broughton looks into researchers’ discovery of the long-lost gamelan that first inspired Debussy in Paris in 1889

Next Issue… • July 2025 (#209) On sale June 13

FEEDBACK • Letters, shout-outs, comments, emails and everything in between

COMPETITIONS

A Conversation with PEDRO BEN • Fifty years on from Mozambique’s independence, one of the country’s leading singers tells the story of a legendary album. Richard Gray finds out about making music in a free Mozambique…

The PULSE • Daniel Brown looks at the astonishing legacy of pioneering Nigerian drummer Tony Allen, and how the rhythms he left behind...