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Latitudes: The International Music You Must Hear In July

Spanish singer Dolores Vargas, "La Terremoto" — The Earthquake — in Madrid in 1970.
Gianni Ferrari
/
Cover/Getty Images
Spanish singer Dolores Vargas, "La Terremoto" — The Earthquake — in Madrid in 1970.

You might not think that sunny summer is the best time to go burrowing deep into dusty sonic arcana. But I feel an immense compulsion to do so right now, thanks a string of superb new compilations of vintage material — paired with the release this month of Amanda Petrusich's entertaining and absorbing book Do Not Sell at Any Price, about the tribal obsessions of 78 rpm collectors and reissue producers (among them, a few of my acquaintances).

Be forewarned: These aren't pristine transfers from masters. But that doesn't matter, because if you hear only the surface noise, you're missing the treasure. As reissue producer Christopher King, who released the Greek violinist Alexis Zoumbas compilation (with cover art from none other than R. Crumb) and is profiled in Petrusich's book, notes: "One half hears the pops and scratches ... The other half hears a sonic rapture, an undulating acoustical pleasure, and a transport back to a more engaging and unvarnished past. This sound series is for the latter at the expense of the former."

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Anastasia Tsioulcas is a reporter on NPR's Arts desk. She is intensely interested in the arts at the intersection of culture, politics, economics and identity, and primarily reports on music. Recently, she has extensively covered gender issues and #MeToo in the music industry, including backstage tumult and alleged secret deals in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations against megastar singer Plácido Domingo; gender inequity issues at the Grammy Awards and the myriad accusations of sexual misconduct against singer R. Kelly.