No-No BoyEmpire Electric
Cat-Nr:SFW40255
Barcode:093074025529
Release datum:10/20/2023
Label:Smithsonian Folkways
Labelcode:09628
Genre:World Music/USA/Folk
There are seemingly infinite layers of meaning to be found in No-No Boy’s third album, Empire Electric. You can listen closely to singer-songwriter Julian Saporiti’s lyrics, which juxtapose true stories of struggle from throughout Asia and its diaspora with Saporiti’s own reckoning with intergenerational trauma. You could also let the majesty of Saporiti’s songcraft wash over you, his captivating melodies cloaking those themes in a veneer of hope and ecstasy. But the deepest storytelling happens at the sonic level, as sounds drawn from across the Eastern hemisphere mingle freely with distinctly American instrumentation — banjo and koto, lap-steel and guzheng — while electronically manipulated field recordings of rushing water, chirping birds and other natural sounds ground us in the now.
  • 1Onion Kings of Ontario03:21
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25501
  • 2Nashville04:35
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25502
  • 3Mekong Baby03:41
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25503
  • 4Western Empress03:31
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25504
  • 5Jakarta04:09
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25505
  • 6Nothing Left But You04:02
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25506
  • 7Little Monk03:29
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25507
  • 8Sayonara03:21
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25508
  • 9Minidoka03:39
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25509
  • 10160305:31
    Music: JULIAN SAPORITILyrics: JULIAN SAPORITIISRC: USSF1-22-25510
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Booklet
Musician
  • Diego Javier Luis: spoken word
  • Emilia Halvorsen Saporiti: harmony vocal (Tracks Nr 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
  • Hamilton Berry: cello (Track Nr 2)
  • Julian Saporiti: lead vocal, instruments, programming
  • Kristin Weber: violin, additional vocal (Tracks Nr 2, 7)
  • P.T. Banks: harmony vocal (Track Nr 7)
  • Thai Hien: vocal (Track Nr 3)
C2023 Smithsonian FolkwaysP2023 Smithsonian Folkways