By Kieran Webber
Romania is a central European country known for the forested region of Transylvania, preserved medieval towns such as Sighişoara and many fortified churches and castles – this is what we are told when googling facts about Romania, little does it mention its rich pool of musical talent.
A fantastic example of this said talent is Fanfare Ciocarlia, although not strictly from Romania – the entire band hail from the same tiny village, Zece Prajini in Moldavia, which is populated solely by Romani families.
They went from playing weddings and baptisms but are now set to play 15 shows across America in 17 days and will be sharing the stage with Gogol Bordello’s Eugene Hutz in New York. In addition to this mega tour they are releasing the studio album ‘Onwards To Mars’ which is due April 15th with the cover designed by Paul Hitter, a famous Romanian Gypsy painter who now lives in Los Angeles.
To get you into the Balkan mood you can listen to the cover of ‘I Put Spell On You’ which has the same energy as the original but with more horns and brass.