Sultans of String
Luna
visit the band's website
and on myspace
also available on cd baby
This 10 song, 45 + minute from this Canadian group is filled with some wonderful gypsy jazz Chris McKhool is the main songwriter and also plays 5-string electric violin, acoustic violin, vocals and produces the disc; Kevin Laliberte plays nylon string guitar, and loops, and the third person in the actual group is Drew Birston electric and acoustic bass. There are about 7 guest artists providing support arguably most noticeable is some wonderful singing in Arabic by Maryem Toller. McKhool and Laliberte wrote most of the songs, in one combination or another.
That said and put out there let me say the music is hot and has a definite flavor of the Middle East,
including music associated with Spain, Lebanon, and Morocco. At times there is piano and maybe Oud if my ears can be trusted to remember my Sandy Bull records well enough. The music is Gypsy and it is quite reminiscent of Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli and the Hot Jazz groups they had in Paris in the 1930s. Not quite as polished yet, with plenty of room for growth, but there are some definite similarities and resemblances in the playing of both groups. Just think hot, hot, hot swing jazz.