The Bells! The Bells!

Lest one should think I only post laboriously longwinded verbosity…

I like bells & vibes.  Grateful to have gotten Mulatu Astatke albums before they disappeared, vastly prefer The Dylan Group to Bob Dylan, and I need to track down the vibraphonist who toured (tours?) with Les Claypool.

These are still on eMusic and, I daresay, bellísimos:

13 Year Cicada - almost no guitars, but still prog rock w/ a female vocalist (unusual!).  Both albums (2017, 2019) are nice and newish.

“S/t” - Viiste (2019) - short and Nordic, somewhere between rock, jazz, and classical music that’s pretty upbeat.

“Tan” - Foliba (2015) - African world music from Poland.  What could be a safer bet?

Much less obscure are the several albums by Aloha, for which the previous three could almost be a RIYL.  Almost.  Let’s hear it for Polyvinyl hanging in there!

If you’re really enamored and digging the resounding resonance, try the old easy listening from Lem Winchester on the vinyl reissues of TP4.  There’s some old Latin bell jazz albums somewhere, too, but I forget the label.  I admit I haven’t bought any and am less sure that I will.  I did spring for the not-so-creatively named Grupo de Percusión U.C.’s “Kai Kai FiLú” based on the album art and don’t regret it.

Anything else you know of and like (doesn’t need to be on eMusic)?

Not on eMusic but maybe formerly:  tense instrumental rock “S/t” - Glorie (2011), instrumental chamber pop with very fitting title “Flying Fantasy” - Alexander Turnquist (2014); “Ambit” - The Cellar & Point (2014); 

Finally, wholly unrelated to eMusic and steel drums rather than bells, but less a remix than a percussive, acoustic rendering of one of my favorite Aphex Twin songs is one of my favorite songs of all time, and I’m pretty sure I won’t make a steel drum list, so here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XlTjeNHv-8


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