Not Drowning Waving - Tabaran

When I was younger, I was more inclined to buy records by bands I had never heard of; Tabaran by Not Drowning, Waving is one of the great successes of that policy. Tabaran is a Kuanuan word spoken by the Tolais people who live in Papua New Guinea. In collaboration with local musicians, Australian eclectics Not Drowning, Waving produced an album that combines rock and pop textures, ambient production, traditional Papuan material, and then-contemporary PNG musical approaches, though the liner notes warn against any illusion of ethnic musical purity. Upon its original release in 1988 it was critically acclaimed and commercially successful, almost going gold. The 2005 deluxe reissue has been completely remastered, and comes with a bonus DVD containing short films, one for every track. There is also a hidden track 9½ minutes after the end of the listed cuts, a brief but amusing stringband outing. Resurrecting this record makes me want to check out the rest of the NDW catalog.