Sublime Frequencies produces music from Java Bali Sumatra Burma Morocco Thailand India Mali Syria Laos Cambodia and Nepal

Sublime Frequencies

PO BOX 17971 SEATTLE, WA 98127 USA

To order CDs, DVDs, and LPs, order from FORCED EXPOSURE.

Sublime Frequencies 0-39 complete DVD Audio Disc (CDs and LPs only)

1970's Algerian Proto-Rai Underground LP SF045

Limited Edition 180 gram vinyl LP with full-color gatefold jacket. This is Rai Music from Algeria as you've not heard it before. In the early 1970's, a new group of singers and musicians were operating on the northwest coast and what they pioneered was a sound that eventually reached worldwide status by the end of the decade, however their names are relatively unknown to this day outside Algeria.

Group Inerane: Guitars From Agadez (Music of Niger) CD SF034 Reissue

CD Reissue of the sold-out LP edition. One of the most exciting records to come from West Africa. This is Group Inerane's debut release. These ten tracks are a combination of amplified roots rock, blues, and folk in the local Tuareg styles at times entering into full-on electric guitar psychedelia. Guitars, drums and female vocals that never lose their power to stun the listener.

Group Doueh: Guitar Music From The Western Sahara CD SF030 Reissue

CD Reissue of the sold-out LP edition. Raw & unfiltered electric Guitar Music of an entirely different order, this is Saharawi music from the Western Sahara sung in the Hassania language and Group Doueh’s first official release outside their home base of Dakhla.

Radio Myanmar (Burma) CD SF044

Radio Myanmar features over 40 tracks recorded between 1994-2007 highlighting many wonderfully strange and beautiful pop, folk, and classical music styles as well as commercials, news and weather reports, National songs, and government announcements. Many of the tracks are in English. This is a rare opportunity for listeners to delve behind the headlines and into the airwaves; to hear for themselves the sounds, rhythms, and voices of urban Burma's radio experience, unfiltered by the international press or state-spokesmen.

Bollywood Steel Guitar CD SF043

Bollywood Steel Guitar is the most comprehensive collection to date of Steel Guitar pop instrumental music from India. All 21 tracks featured here were Film hits from 1962-1986 and all the masters of the steel guitar sound from the period are represented. This CD was compiled and carefully selected from rare LPs over several years by Stuart Ellis.

Shadow Music Of Thailand LP SF042

Limited Edition Vinyl LP! Welcome to the Thai Shadow sound of the mid-1960's. Shadow records were often marketed as 'Thai Modernized Music' which it was in the truest sense. Traditional Thai melodies were given the Shadow treatment; incorporating rock, surf, a-go-go, exotica, soul, blues, Latin and other worldly styles of the times and the results range from plaintive guitar and organ-driven lullabies to full-blown electric garage folk-psychedelia!

Musical Brotherhoods From The Trans-Saharan Highway DVD SF041

Filmed in 2005 by Hisham Mayet predominately at the Jemaa Al Fna in Marrakesh Morocco, 'Musical Brotherhoods of the Trans-Saharan Highway' captures an assortment of spectacular musical dramas presented live and unfiltered on the home turf of the world's most dynamic string and drum specialists performing and manifesting the ecstatic truth. This is some of the last great street music on Earth. A must see for string aficionados looking for inspiration as electric ouds, banjos, mandolins and the Gnawa sentir peel flesh from bone right before your eyes!

Sumatran Folk Cinema DVD SF040

A psychedelic collage of images and sounds from the heart and soul of Sumatran culture with the main focus on music. Witness classic Dangdut rock music, street and country scenes, raw TV excerpts, Minang Orchestras, night markets, folk musicians, and much more wrapped in a 60 minute kaleidoscope complete with an epic soundtrack. Filmed in and around Medan, Padang, Bukitinggi and beyond with some of the most amazing pre-tsunami footage ever captured from Aceh province. Shot by Mark Gergis and Alan Bishop on location in 2004 with a segment from Banda Aceh filmed by David Martinez in 2003.

Latinamericarpet: Exploring the Vinyl Warp of Latin American Psychedelia Vol 1 CD SF039

Latinamericarpet is a non-stop collage of vinyl artifacts culled from stacks of forgotten LPs of the 1960’s and 1970’s from Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Chile, and Isle de Pascua (Easter Island). Although most of the tracks presented here were recorded during the peak of the psychedelic era in the late 60’s and early 70’s, this is not a collection exclusively packed with guitar group psychedelia. There are also pop and folkloric songs, children’s songs, odd instructional record excerpts, and a few other anomalies from our neighbours to the south.

PROIBIDÃO C.V: Forbidden Gang Funk From Rio de Janeiro CD SF038

PROIBIDÃO is the name given to a certain kind of electronic funk music produced in Brazilian favelas. A raw mix of live funk vocals and Miami bass structures, these anonymous tracks are spread illegally by DJs and gang sponsored parties. CV stands for Comando Vermelho, a criminal organization that was the strongest in all of Rio de Janeiro in the 1990's. Recorded and assembled by filmmaker Carlos Casas in 2003.

Ethnic Minority Music of North Vietnam CD SF037

This third volume in a series compiled by Laurent Jeanneau from his continual journeys into the more remote tribal areas of Southeast Asia features field recordings of the Giay, Lu, Red Zao, and Black Hmong peoples from North Vietnam. Here, one can discover an unusual vocal style called “Baozoo” which is unlike anything we've heard before.

Ethnic Minority Music of Southern Laos CD SF036

Ethnic Minority Music of Southern Laos is a collection of landmark recordings by Laurent Jeanneau documenting music created by the Harak and various Brao ethnic groups in Xekong, Champasak and Attapeu provinces . Here you can hear the true historic roots of Molam music, Gong ensembles, various stringed instruments, cymbals, drums, and sung poetry all captured live on location with the ambient sounds of the surrounding villages.

Music of Nat Pwe: Folk and Pop Music of Myanmar Vol. 3 CD SF035

Volume 3 of our Folk & Pop series from Myanmar documents the melodically ornamental and thundering sound of the Nat Pwe orchestra which is perhaps the last great internationally unknown musical juggernaut existing anywhere. Recorded live at various Nat Festivals throughout Myanmar and featuring some of Burma’s most popular musicians, you’ll witness impossible yet flawless execution of composition, wild free-form improvisation, ghost spirit-possessed vocal divas, and the apex of high cultural art blending seamlessly with folkloric-metaphysical ceremony.

Group Inerane: Guitars From Agadez (Music of Niger) LP SF034

Group Inerane is the now sound of the Tuareg Guitar Revolution sweeping across the Sahara Desert and inspired by the rebel musicians that started this music as a political weapon used to communicate from the Libyan Refugee camps in the 1980s and 1990s. Recorded by Hisham Mayet, this is the second Sublime Frequencies Vinyl Release. 180 gram vinyl, full-color gatefold jacket, and limited one-time pressing of 1000 copies.

Molam: Thai Country Groove From Isan Vol. 2 CD SF033

The true, raw & electrified, hardcore roots Molam sound from Northeastern Thailand. As psychedelic as Country music could ever be, this is a collection of the most grooving, rocking and droning beats of the Isan countryside from the 1970’s. Perhaps even better than Volume 1, this was the magic period of modern Molam when effected guitars & Phin, crazy organ sounds, and absolutely stunning vocal freestylers ruled the Northeast.

Thai Pop Spectacular (1960's-1980's) CD SF032

Thai Pop Music from the 1960’s-1980’s, every single track a winner! Surf guitars, funky organs, tight horn sections, and amazing vocals are assembled here in this compilation of retro-pop grooves from Bangkok and beyond. Featuring the “Queen of Luk Thung”, the “Shadow Music” style of Johnny Guitar, a few Thai trademark comedy songs, and much more. Romping Disco, seductive Thai soul, wah-wah pedals, and crazy arrangements help round out this astounding set.

Omar Souleyman: Highway to Hassake (Folk and Pop Sounds of Syria) CD SF031

Described by some in the west as “Jihadi Techno”, this is Omar Souleyman’s first release outside the middle east! Compiled, assembled, and edited by Mark Gergis, “Highway to Hassake” is an overview of Omar’s entire career. This is the true folk/pop sound of modern Syria. Instrumentation includes Saz, Oud, vocals and amazing keyboard electronics which play out as forbidden morse code at breakneck speeds…intense and mesmerizing.

Group Doueh: Guitar Music From The Western Sahara LP SF030

The first Sublime Frequencies Vinyl Release! 180 gram vinyl, full-color gatefold jacket, and limited one-time pressing of 1000 copies. Raw & unfiltered electric Guitar Music of an entirely different order, this is Saharawi music from the Western Sahara sung in the Hassania language and Group Doueh’s first official release outside their home base of Dakhla.

Radio Algeria CD SF029

Radio Algeria is a multi-dimensional assembly of audio culture and perhaps the most diverse collection of the Algerian listening experience ever presented featuring raw Berber folk, modern Arabic pop, sacred Islamic traditional, Andalusian orchestral, Guesba (the origin of Rai), classic early Rai, Khabyle, Tuareg, Saharaui, and hybrid music styles.

Radio Thailand: Transmissions from the Tropical Kingdom 2-CD SF028

This 2-CD set is an exhaustive collection of Thai Radio transmissions recorded over a 15-year period from 1989 to 2004. The Music presented here is relentlessly mystifying and seductive: Molam, Luk Thung, Kantrum, folk and pop, classic Thai guitar Rock, antique ballads, novelty tunes, traditional ceremonial music and other miscellaneous styles rarely heard outside the Kingdom.

Ethnic Minority Music of Northeast Cambodia CD SF027

For the first time ever, a recording that documents the ceremonial animist music from the mysterious tribal villages of Northeast Cambodia. Mesmerizing vocals, gong ensembles, guitars, flutes, and unique local instruments from Tampoan, Krung, kavet, Brao, Jarai, and Phnong people of Ratanakiri and Mondolkiri Provinces in NE Cambodia. Recorded by Laurent Jeanneau.

Phi Ta Khon: Ghosts of Isan DVD SF026

Described as ‘The Mardi Gras from Hell’ and ‘Thai Halloween" PHI TA KHON is a ghost festival that takes place every year in the Isan province of Northern Thailand. Colorful masks, MoLam music, magnificent costumes, and phallic icons of all sizes, Phi Ta Khon is a mind-blowing and obscure tradition hidden in the interior of the Indochine peninsula. A film by Robert Millis. Color/75 minutes

Choubi Choubi! Folk and Pop Sounds from Iraq CD SF025

BACK IN STOCK! This collection of vintage folk and pop displays a wealth of outstanding music that is exclusive to Iraq and has rarely been showcased abroad. Saddam Era Iraqi music styles from Choubi rhythms, Zanbour drumming (rapid-fire machine gun hand drums), Socialist folk-rock with electric guitar and trumpet, Basta, Bezikh, Hecha, and the gorgeous vocal style of Mawal.

Guitars of the Golden Triangle: Folk and Pop Music of Myanmar Vol. 2 CD SF024

Never before presented outside a tiny minority of the Burmese community, this is previously undiscovered 1970's garage and psychedelic rock, raw folk blues ballads, and country-western styled music from Shan State in Myanmar's Golden Triangle. These recordings are from a phenomenal “lost scene” and we’re thrilled to resurrect it for those interested in folk, rock and pop styles from lesser-known regions of the globe.

Radio Pyongyang: Commie Funk and Agit Pop from the Hermit Kingdom CD SF023

Schmaltzy synthpop, Revolutionary rock, Cheeky child rap, and a healthy dose of hagiography for Dear Leader Kim Jong-il, this is the NOW sound of North Korea! A hermit kingdom with a rich folk history and an even richer tradition in over-the-top praise for the ruling House of Kim. Christiaan Virant has visited this mysterious land and assembled this amazing audio collage.

NIGER: Magic and Ecstasy in the Sahel DVD SF022

A celebration of life in the Sahel region of Africa, this film showcases many of Niger’s venerable music styles. Tuareg Electric Guitar trance rock, Bori cult dance ceremonies, Fulani Folk, and Roadhouse Gospel Rave-ups are some of the segments included in this latest "Folk Cinema" classic from Sublime Frequencies!

Radio Sumatra: The Indonesian FM Experience CD SF021

Whats happening NOW on Indonesian Radio from the FM airwaves of Sumatra? A completely mystifying Universe of Sound swirling in an explosive musical kaleidoscope, thats what! Escape to the world of Dangdut, Melayu, Gambus, punk, rap, psych, and almost everything else with plenty of styles you never knew existed. Recorded/edited in 2004!

Radio Phnom Penh CD SF020

Rebel Guitars, Assorted Dialects, Heat-Stroke Synthesizers, and thats just a taste of this diverse assortment of Cambodian musical treasures you’ve NEVER heard before. Flowing from traditional to Modern, from rock and pop to folk and hybrid, all sequenced in the spirit of how it was captured: as radio programming designed to immediately transport you into the heart of Cambodia’s Capital.

MOLAM: THAI Country Groove From ISAN CD SF019

A Rotating Pantheon of Freestyle Singers atop the addictive Molam Beat, this is the Soul AND country music of Laos and the predominantly rural Northeastern region of Thailand known as Isan. The Molam sound is like nothing else! The classic recordings featured here are selections from rare vinyl LPs, 45s and cassettes recorded during the 1970s and 1980s when electric bass, effected guitars, electric organs, kit drums and horns played alongside traditional instruments like the khaen and the phin.

Folk and Pop Sounds of Sumatra Vol. 2 CD SF018

From the infectious trance beat of Folk "Dangdut" music to the highly-refined "Orkes Gambus" (Orchestral Arabic music) this is an assortment of relics from a forgotten period of Sumatran music when psychedelic organs echoed underneath arabic string sections and rustic violins sawed atop trance beats from poorly-lit night markets.

Harmika Yab Yum: Folk Sounds From Nepal CD SF017

“Harmika Yab Yum” is a divine blend of Radio excerpts and field recordings from Nepal compiled by Robert Millis. This exciting mosaic snares among other oddities, a “King Cobra” snake charmer, the sounds of slaughtering buffaloes and guns firing amidst a Durga Puja festival, dreamy folk music, Sarangi and Harmonium players seeping in from unknown radio signals, pounding drums, praying monks, child choruses, street sermons, loudspeaker promotionals, and quiet footsteps at the top of the world.

Streets of Lhasa CD SF016

“Streets of Lhasa” lifts us to the high plateau of Tibet where anonymous street balladeers sell folk songs for a living and ghostly voices drift in an ambience of time forgotten. This ornamental carnival of sound was recorded by Zhang Jian (of the Beijing-based sound collective “fm3”) on the streets of Lhasa, ZhaDa and Shigatse in August 2003. Liner notes written by Steve Barker (ON THE WIRE/BBC).

Leaf Music, Drunks, Distant Drums CD ANOM26

Ambient and Musical recordings from Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Burma recorded by Robert Millis in 2002. In a strange twist of fate, Sublime Frequencies has obtained the rights to distribute the remaining copies of this superb collection released on Anomalous Records in 2004.

ISAN: Folk and Pop Music of Northeast Thailand DVD SF015

Welcome to ISAN, Thailand's forgotten frontier, where Lao, Thai and Cambodian folkloric traditions have conspired to create a mystifying pageantry of music and dance still relatively unknown to outsiders. Explore the raw cultural heritage of the Mekong interior, land of the Phin guitar and the bamboo Khaen and discover musical styles such as "Molam" and "Pong Lang".

RADIO INDIA: The Eternal Dream of Sound 2-CD SF014

A swan dive into perhaps the most astounding radio treasure chest the world has ever known, this amazing collection of audio art is a testament to India’s Museum of Sound. This two hour listening experience features Radio Collage of music-only edits on disc one, with a more adventurous mix of music, radio commercials, news, DJs, and miscellaneous sound dimensions on disc two.

Brokenhearted Dragonflies: Insect Electronica from Southeast Asia CD SF013

There is a legend in Burma stating that swarms of male dragonflies gather to join in choruses of high-pitched tones to court their mates. The ones that don’t succeed in mating eventually scream so loud that their chests explode and they drop dead to the ground. These recordings are a tribute to this legend. Droning cicadas, dragonflies and other insects display their charm as masters of the High Frequency Airwaves recorded live and unprocessed by Tucker Martine in the lush settings of Laos, Thailand, and Burma.

BUSH TAXI MALI: Field Recordings From Mali CD SF012

Bush Taxi Mali is an aural tour through the heart of Mali. These field recordings were made by Tucker Martine in 1998 while traveling throughout the West African country. Some of the highlights include Ngoni blues, Fulani flutes, street sounds of radios, Imams, and Dogon chants, and the stunning voice of Jalimusa Amanita Diabate!

Cambodian Cassette Archives: Khmer Folk & Pop music Vol. 1 CD SF011

An unbelievable collection of dynamic Cambodian music recorded between the 1960s and the 1990s, both in Cambodia and in the United States. A truly Khmer blend of folk and pop including Cha-Cha, Psychedelia, Phase-shifting Rock, sultry circle dance standards, pulsing Cambodian new wave, haunted ballads, musical comedy sketches, Easy-Listening numbers and raw instrumental grooves.

Folk Music of the Sahara: Among the Tuareg of Libya DVD SF010

Folk music of the Sahara is an intoxicating experience of sight and sound captured among the Tuareg and Libyan people of North Central Africa. Filmed from the perspective of actually being one of the performers, this mind-blowing IN YOUR FACE document captures the spirit of Libyan folklore and the essence of emotion armed with pounding rhythms and wailing vocal choruses

I Remember Syria 2-CD SF009

A jaw-dropping expose of music, news, interviews and field recordings from one of the least-known quarters of the Arab world. The country of Syria has been politically and culturally exiled for decades by the western media leaving little known of its rich heritage of art, music and culture.

Radio Palestine: Sounds of the Eastern Mediterranean CD SF008

From the traditional Nubian sounds of Southern Egypt to the cultured Arabic pop of Beirut, its all here in super-sonic collage: Cairo Orchestral/Greek Sartaki/Palestinian Folk/ Jewish and Euro-hybrid music styles/ Jordanian reverb guitar....all placed deep within the mirage of an 18 year-old time capsule of news, commercials, radio plays, UFO signals, Secret agent messages and chainsaw shortwave!

Radio Morocco CD SF007

Arabic music is HIGH ART. At its best, it transcends western music even as it utilizes it as a display of emotion and celebration. The Moroccans are deep contributors to the high art of Arabic music. This is radio collage from Morocco's airwaves circa 1983 when the American entertainment industry was grinding Michael Jackson's THRILLER into world conciousness as superpower export culture. Moroccan radio was broadcasting at a high level. The proof is right here.

Princess Nicotine: Folk and Pop Music of Myanmar (Burma) CD SF006

This is the first TRUE compilation of this phenomenal scene from Yangon to Mandalay and beyond. Here are some of the greatest names from the past 50 years of Burmese musical history from the original recordings featuring Mar Mar Aye, Bo Sein, and the incomparable Tonte Theintan. Listen, and be amazed!

Jemaa El Fna: Morocco's Rendezvous of the Dead DVD SF005

Filmed in Marrakech's legendary "Jemaa El Fna", the central square of the final outpost before venturing into the great beyond of the western Sahara desert, this film is one of the most vivid documents ever presented capturing the raw folk stylings of Moroccan music. Shot at night, the performers manifest their passions right before your eyes, some drifting into extreme characters, others floating in dark, flowering breeze.

Nat Pwe: Burma's Carnival of Spirit Soul DVD SF004

In Burma, many people believe in ghost spirits called NATs. They are said to possess the power to assist or devastate the lives of those who recognize them. A PWE is a ceremony held to appease a Nat. Pwes are arranged daily throughout Burma for many purposes including the achievement of success in business, a happy marriage, or improving one's health.

Night Recordings from BALI CD SF003

Field recordings from central Bali at night, with mood, magic and all the mystery this great island can supply. Several styles of Gamelan music are present along with sounds of the midnight forests and crossroads. Supernatural sound from the Balinese interior!

Radio Java CD SF002

A radio collage of Javanese music featuring dangdut, keroncong, jaipongan, rock, pop, disco, as well as theatre, commercials, DJ’s, news snippets, and other broadcast anomalies sequenced for listening perfection!

Folk and Pop Sounds of Sumatra Vol.1 CD SF001

An essential collection of unique folk and pop music from the Island of Sumatra, including drone beat pop, jungle folk trance, gypsy hybrid songs, haunting vocal chants, and other beautiful, lost styles, which have yet to be discovered.

SUBLIME FREQUENCIES is a collective of explorers dedicated to acquiring and exposing obscure sights and sounds from modern and traditional urban and rural frontiers via film and video, field recordings, radio and short wave transmissions, international folk and pop music, sound anomalies, and other forms of human and natural expression not documented sufficiently through all channels of academic research, the modern recording industry, media, or corporate foundations. SUBLIME FREQUENCIES is focused on an aesthetic of extra-geography and soulful experience inspired by music and culture, world travel, research, and the pioneering recording labels of the past including OCORA, SMITHSONIAN FOLKWAYS, ETHNIC FOLKWAYS, LYRICHORD, NONESUCH EXPLORER, MUSICAPHONE, BARONREITER, UNESCO, PLAYASOUND, MUSICAL ATLAS, CHANT DU MONDE, B.A.M., TANGENT, and TOPIC. SUBLIME FREQUENCIES PO BOX 17971 SEATTLE WA 98127 USA 0