Zdob Si Zdub

A madcap spirit dances with Moldova's Zdob Si Zdub, and little wonder: Band members have witnessed so many radical social, political and cultural disruptions since the end of the Cold War that laughter might be the sanest response. The group originated in one of the ska revivals that periodically spill across the world, but in the manner of a band adopting an alien rhythm without much context, ZSZ's scope only continued to expand, incorporating elements of whatever catches their ear into idiosyncratic, truly “world music.” Sounds from their region, including Balkan brass and klezmer and Red Army choruses, mingle with elements of Kraftwerk and echoes of '70s Bowie, prog rock and who knows what else. Most but not all of the lyrics are sung in English, still the lingua franca of global pop.