Revised Blog Roll

Its that time again for some good old fashioned bloodletting in the approved reading materials in Tubbyland. Some sites have been dispatched to the basement of the Lubyanka and a quick exit to the fertiliser farm, and there have been some new appointments to the Central Committee.

Reasons are many and varied. Readers are by now heartily sick of my music posts, so a bit of blood and brain on the carpet is probably a welcome diversion. Blogs which fail to update regularly or which deal with Sino matters which even the cat finds boring have been kidnapped off the street and dispatched to the basement. Similarly, sites which refer to musical genres which should have been strangled at birth are also dogmeat.

So, after much factional horse trading and backstabbing, here is the new reading curriculum.

In line with my interest in the more violent aspects of Japanese cinema, Japan Focus has been added.

The Arabist looks like it provides precise analysis of North African affairs in addition to being link rich.

For the most comprehensive overview of Malian and related musics, I have added Sahel Sounds.

If you enjoy musical exploration, try Groovemonzter an Australian site which features classic West African sounds. The King Sunny Ade compilation is awesome.

Finally, a recent discovery Blaxploitation Pride. If you enjoyed Cleopatra Jones and are now ready for Black Emanuelle. Okay, many of these flics went straight to video, but be assured most of the sound tracks are killer.

I’m quite sure that this wasn’t what William Bell had in mind.

Okay, I’ve now hosed the blood and gore off the walls, so you can relax again and read in comfort.

(A couple more sites will be added in the next few days.)