Mulatu Astatke + Criolo - Koko, London

First published on Musika.uk.com in November 2012.



Mulatu Astatke + Criolo
Koko, London
18th November 2012

Mulatu Astatke is widely known as the father and king of Ethiojazz and in recent years has started to become regarded as one of the pioneers of jazz itself, Africanising the hard-bop ensembles and sensitivities of the late 50s/early 60s America with traditional Ethiopian scales and rhythms.

At the converted theatre that is Camden’s Koko, Astatke played a relatively rare UK date joined by a London-based jazz band. Without a particular album to promote, the 69-year-old percussion player led the seven-piece ensemble through somewhat of a ‘best of’ concert, showcasing highlights of his long career, from his classic pieces used in the Éthiopiques record series, such as dark grooves of ‘Yèkatit’ and ‘Yèkèrmo Sèw’ (the latter a take on Horace Silver’s ‘Song for My Father’ and ‘Señor Blues’) to tracks from his latest ‘modern jazz’ albums with the Heliocentrics and the Either/Orchestra such as ‘Motherland’ and ‘Chik Chikka’.

Due to the nature of the ensemble, each track had many different influences as various members of the band took their turns to solo: James Arben of the Heliocentrics on saxophone, bass clarinet and flute moving effortlessly from bebop to free jazz and back; double bassist John Edward, seemingly of the Charles Mingus school of madcap bassery, not limiting his playing to the strings of his instrument; ‘Mr Alex’ on cello sounding like anything between an electric harpsichord and an entire, joyfully discordant horn section. Meanwhile, Astatke’s vibraphone, as well as the obvious comparison with Milt Jackson (both for his instrument and the flowing quality of his melodies) also evoked thoughts of Thelonious Monk in his playful use of dissonance and the heavy textures of more contemporary musicians such as Django Bates, all the while keeping the grounding firmly in Ethiopia.

Due to an odd bit of scheduling, the evening’s support act performed after Astatke and his band, creating effectively a double-header. Criolo, a rapper and singer from São Paolo, Brazil has been recently hailed as one of the brightest young stars on the scene, and, having collaborated with Astatke earlier this year as part of the Back2Black festival, seemed an exciting addition to the bill. Indeed, Criolo’s band fit the evening perfectly with their take on jazz funk whilst including bossa, tango, free jazz and reggae influences. Unfortunately, the same cannot really be said for Criolo himself nor his hypeman. Between the rapper’s rhythmically unimaginative raps and awkward stage presence and the frankly irritating hyper’s seemingly uncontrollable urge to shout obnoxiously over any of the musicians’ solos, one could be forgiven for thinking they were doing their best to ruin the ensemble’s work. The rapper’s set seemed to divide the audience, with those staying going wild, while others left in disappointment.

An evening of two halves then. One gets the feeling that in a different slot, venue or roster, Criolo may be viewed more favourably, but then, following a master doing as he does best is never easy.

Photo: Ethiopiques, by Howard Stanbury. Used under licence CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

Seckou Keita - Miro

First published on Musika.uk.com in November 2012.

Seckou Keita
Miro
Astar Artes Recordings (48 mins)

Senegalese kora (harp-lute) player Seckou Keita here presents his fourth solo album, Miro, featuring many musicians who were involved with Keita’s Bantamba Syndicate project, which was presented as part of the BT River of Music festival in London earlier this year.

The album’s first track ‘Rewmi’ (a Wolof word meaning ‘country’) was a hit in Senegal before the February presidential election which saw the end of Abdoulaye Wade’s 12-year premiership. Whether the track (which calls for peace and beckons listeners to fight disease and hunger) had a hand in this result as the album’s press material seems to suggest is another matter, but the piece itself is a strong album opener – the interplay between Keita’s kora and Cuban bassist Michel ‘Pata’ Salazar is tight and an effective accompaniment to the vocal harmonies of Binta Suso and Mariama Kouyate.

Unfortunately, after this promising opener, the album seems to settle into something less exciting. Seckou aligns himself with the griots lineage of his mother (a Cissokho) rather than the royal heritage that the name Keita implies, and sees Miro as an attempt to “step back towards [his] tradition”. However, in practice, the album seems tempered towards European tastes and ideas of what makes ‘world music’ and as such seems to assume a fairly middle-of-the-road sound dissimilar to his previous albums of slightly more challenging, and thus more interesting, music.

Which is not to say that the album lacks its standout tracks, however. Aside from ‘Rewmi’, the highlights for this reviewer are incidentally the most stripped-back pieces on the album, both featuring Keita’s kora as the only instrumentation, helping to showcase the talent of guest singers. The track ‘Tara’, a traditional Mande piece, is given a new edge by the soul-inspired vocals of Ivorian singer Mohamed Diaby. Diaby also features on the track ‘Hino’, but defers lead duties to Spanish singer Inma La Carbonera. This Mande-flamenco cross-cultural collaboration is perhaps the album’s most effective track, La Carbonera’s voice aching beautifully in front of the kora; it’s also where Keita is at his most innovative, having had to adapt a new kora tuning to be able to play in the flamenco style.

Miro certainly has its moments, but a seeming lack of decisiveness between a fully-traditional sound and a Western-market friendly release leaves many disappointing tracks in between, meaning that the album perhaps lends itself more to the pick-and-choose ideology of digital downloading than a purchase of the whole album as a piece of art in its own right.

Dizraeli and the Small Gods - Jazz Café Camden, London

First published on Musika.uk.com in November 2012.



Dizraeli and the Small Gods
Jazz Café Camden, London
3rd November 2012

Through the chatter of the capacity audience of the Jazz Café breaks a quiet but harsh sound. As the crowd hush, a bagpiper wearing a balaclava and rabbit ears makes his way to the stage, heralding a short a cappella piece in five-part harmony from the rest of the band. If any of the crowd were under the impression this was going to be a straight-up hip-hop gig, this introduction should have been enough to silence such thoughts.

Dizraeli and the Small Gods play folk and hip-hop, occasionally separately, but most times in perfect harmony with each other as well as any other style that takes their fancy, from modern jazz to drum-and-bass to Turkish music. Usually a seven-piece, each member of the band is highly talented and creative within their role, with members coming from hip-hop, folk, classical and jazz backgrounds variously. Tonight, however, the band were eight: missing their violist Jules Arthur, the Small Gods featured both of their regular bassists Bellatrix (who also happens to be the UK female beatbox champion) and Nathan Feddo and introduced Philippe Barnes, the above-mentioned rabbit piper who also contributed versatile flute and keys.

Throughout their whopping hour and forty minute-long set, the Small Gods switched between dancey and chilled, joyous and sorrowful, playing with the emotions of the audience before building the mood up for the grand finale, a raucous and extended edition of the band’s single ‘Never Mind’, whose launch (as well as the group’s signing to Afro Celt Simon Emmerson’s ECC Records) the gig was based around.

Dizraeli himself said in a 2010 interview that “rap is a subgenre of poetry – poetry isn’t necessarily rap, but rap is necessarily poetry”, and at this gig he seemed determined to prove it, slipping seamlessly from full band pieces to often off-mic poems and then further blurring the division between the two forms by spinning yarns over the Small God’s accompaniment. Indeed, a highlight of the set was a solo spoken word version of ‘Maria’, a heart-breaking and beautiful modern-day folk story from the group’s debut album Engurland (City Shanties) which was joined spontaneously by almost the entire audience during the sung refrain – just one of many spine-tingling moments of the concert, along with ‘White Rum’, a tale of love between two cheating parties, and basically any time songbird Cate Ferris opened her mouth.

Joining the Small Gods for their piece ‘Sailor’ was Cambridge-based rapper Jam Baxter. Although Baxter’s verses are as witty and intelligent as Dizraeli’s, he seemed to lack the musicality that really makes the Small Gods frontman stand out from the crowd. Nevertheless, Baxter’s contribution went down well with the ever-appreciative crowd.

Dizraeli and the Small Gods are often referred to as one of Britain’s most ‘exciting’ young acts, and it’s certainly true, as well as ‘intelligent’, ‘funny’ and ‘musically-gifted’. Keep your eyes peeled for these guys, you won’t regret it.

Various Artists - Orient Noir: A West-Eastern Divan

First published on Musika.uk.com in October 2012.

Various Artists
Orient Noir: A West-Eastern Divan
Piranha Musik (64 mins)

The first two tracks of this compilation work effectively as its mission statement, with French band Watcha Clan’s brooding Jewish-and-Electronica opener blending seamlessly with Salwa Abou Greisha’s mix of Egyptian classical music and Nubian song.

And so the album goes. Orient Noir brings together music from around the Arabic cultural sphere and the Jewish diaspora. Genres featured range from the classical to the modern, including fusions with dubstep, Latin and Balkan music, amongst others. Although the album seems to have the vague structure of moving from older to newer styles as it progresses, the latter seem to take more of a precedence.

The stand-out track of the album is ‘Pakistani’, a Zanzibari piece performed by ‘Queen of Taarab’ Bi Kidude Baraka. As well as the fusion of Egyptian classical music with East African styles that is taarab, this example also uses a strong tango influence, much akin to the Arabic string orchestras of Beirut and Damascus. Another highlight is the full version of Watcha Clan’s cover of Ofra Haza’s ‘Im Nin'Alu’, in which they effortlessly combine Sephardi vocals, Balkan brass and Arabic percussion with a grounding of dubstep bass and beats.

That such contrasting tracks can sit together on an album pleasingly and without jarring is a testament to the skills of the compiler, Dr. Bertram Nickolay. However, while the tracks of the album and their position in relation to each other create an enjoyable and interesting listen, the compilation itself seems to lack focus. If the goal was to highlight and celebrate the similarities between Arabic, Jewish and Balkan music, then tracks such as Maurice el Médioni’s Maghrebi Latin track ‘Ya Maalem/Kelbi Razahi’ fit somewhat uneasily with such aims; similarly, if a Mediterranean journey was intended, then the offerings from Bi Kidude and The Klezmatics undermine this.

Overall, for a pleasant album of great music with an ‘oriental sound’ (whatever that somewhat troubling term may imply), this compilation hits the spot. Just don’t think about it too much.

Terry Scott Taylor - Return to the Neverhood

First published on Musika.uk.com in October 2012.

Terry Scott Taylor
Return to the Neverhood
Stunt Grafx (32 mins)

Back in 1996, a PC game, The Neverhood, was released. A point-and-click adventure game, it set itself apart from the competition by being animated entirely in claymation. Unfortunately, although critically-acclaimed, the game was released towards the end of the adventure game boom, and sales suffered; it has been regarded ever since as a ‘cult classic’ for its interesting puzzles, witty and unusual humour and award-winning original soundtrack by Terry Scott Taylor and The All-Clay Band.

Taylor, founding member and lead singer of Christian rock bands Daniel Amos and the Swirling Eddies, responded to director/animator Doug TenNapel’s request to make the music sound ‘clay-like’ with aplomb, creating a mix of blues, folk, vaudevillian jazz and not a small amount of sheer nonsense. The soundtrack was released as a standalone album in 2000 under the title Imaginarium: Songs from the Neverhood.

The Return to the Neverhood, then, is the artistic sequel to Imaginarium, and it takes the form of a story album – the music complements (and comes with) a short story written by Taylor with artwork from TenNapel. The style of this album is quite different from its predecessor: gone are the most mind-boggling pieces (an announcer drily introducing short periods of silence; deranged screaming of the basic plot of the video game) but the overall craziness remains in droves. The introduction of meaningful (or, at least, understandable) lyrics to the repertoire alongside the trademark Leon Redbone-style scatting adds another element to the humour. The musicianship seems, for neither better nor worse, much tighter than in the previous offering, and the All-Clay Band’s stylistic horizons have been broadened, with calliope-style waltzes, mariachi and klezmer all making appearances.

Although the tracks are rather short, (out of 19 tracks, the longest clocks in at 3:11, the total run time standing at 32 minutes) the highlights are numerous, owing to the expanse of genres presented. ‘Ode to a Hunch’ (the first track of the ‘Love Sweet Love Suite’), a delightful jazz blues with wonderfully weird lyrics and a face-melting trumpet solo, is definitely one of these, as are bass clarinet-led ‘Let’s Get This Ball Rolling!’ and the album’s overture and finale – probably the squelchiest waltzes you’ll hear for a while. Those familiar with the first album may also be interested to hear subtle references to such in the Return, such as the track ‘Huh?’ taking its melody in part from the track ‘Jose Feliciano’.

Fans expecting to hear an album akin to an Imaginarium, Vol. 2 may find themselves somewhat disappointed at the slight change in style – after a 16-year gap, as much is to be expected – but can rest assured that both the ethos and result are very much the same – fun music to make you laugh, with or without lyrics.

Staff Benda Bilili - Bouger le Monde!

First published on Musika.uk.com in September 2012.

Staff Benda Bilili
Bouger le Monde!
Crammed Discs (52 mins)

Three years after their widely-acclaimed debut album, Staff Benda Bilili are one of the most recognisable African acts in the world at the moment, for both their music and their striking image. Having toured Europe and North America several times since the release of Très Très Fort, their new album has been almost as awaited as their first. So does it live up to such hype?

The sound of the satongé, the electric one-stringed musical bow invented and played by Roger Landu, is probably the band’s most distinctive musical element, and it’s emphasised further in this album. Roger, now 21 years old, has both refined and matured his technique and sound – his solo on the track ‘Kuluna’ is simply masterful, utilising subtle wah-wah and echo as well as the usual distortion to create a sound somewhere between a Jimi Hendrix solo and a theremin. His singing, heard in live shows but not featured in Très Très Fort, makes an appearance this time around and to brilliant effect. His voice probably the smoothest out of the seven singers featured on the album, proving that this prodigy always has more to offer.

One of the most obvious changes on this album is the large influence of Latin music, most particularly the rumba Lingala that was for so long the DRC’s signature music before the ‘Congotronics’ sound came to the fore. The Latin element is probably used to best effect, and at its most noticeable, in the track ‘Ne Me Quitte Pas’, a highlight of the album and a much darker sounding piece than some of the more traditionally soukous-like tracks such as ‘Libala Ya Mungwa’ and ‘Mutu Esalaka’. Another addition is the electric guitar of Amalphi Masamba, most effective during its roaring solos, providing a delicious contrast to the lo-fi electro-acoustic sounds of the famous Socklo guitars of the rest of the band.

One element lacking from Bouger le Monde!, however, is the feeling of wide originality. Staff Benda Bilili’s first album was a great listen primarily because of its exciting freshness of sound – each track had its own personality that set it apart from the rest, a feeling that stretched to the album itself. Their follow-up, however, seems rather samey in comparison; most tracks feel as if they would either belong on Très Très Fort stylistically, or that they could have been played by a typical rumba band (albeit an incredibly talented one).

Taken on its own, this is a great album – in fact, of Congolese rumba, one of the best. Yet as a second album to a debut which quickly attained classic status, it falls slightly short of that very high bar. But not by much.

Jupiter & Okwess International - Momo's Kemia Bar, London

First published on Musika.uk.com in September 2012.



Jupiter & Okwess International
Momo's Kemia Bar, London
10th September 2012

Just two days after disembarking from the momentous week-long, train-bound jam session that was Africa Express, one could be forgiven for taking a well-earned rest…but for those with party in their veins, like Okwess International, that’s never an option.

The set grew into being one musician at a time: Alberto Makossa makes an abrupt cymbal crash before slipping into a typical funk rhythm on the drum kit; Cubain Kabeya joins in with Latin-tinged percussion in the form of congas and bongos; followed by Yendé Balemba on bass, Choulé Mubiayé on rhythm guitar and Richard Kabanga on lead guitar, each introducing themselves musically but with little fanfare before dropping into the groove, which has been aided by Nelly Eliya adding her shakers to the mix. Finally, a lanky, powerful-looking man walks slowly onto the stage and assumes the central position in front of a pair of yuka drums. This is Jupiter Bokonji, leader of Okwess International.

Although the band’s instrumentation is similar to that of their compatriots Staff Benda Bilili (their rhythm and bass guitars are even made by the same, increasingly famous Kinshasa luthier Socklo), their overall sound seems to owe more to the hypnotic repetition of the likembé, Richard’s lead guitar lines flitting between funk and something approaching dark soukous sounds through the typical distorted ‘Congotronic’ tone, sometimes even sounding like a particularly crunchy synthesiser.

Aside from a handful of tracks on which he takes lead vocal duty from Yendé or Nelly, Jupiter resembles a figure akin to that of a gospel reverend leading his choir – central to the band but not necessarily their music; the nucleus that gives meaning to the band’s cell.

As a venue, Momo’s Kemia Bar may seem somewhat incongruous for a central African band whose main export is dance – it’s very small, stuffy and Moroccan-themed – and perhaps a more open and relaxed vibe could have benefitted the music, but with the night’s capacity crowd (and the help of the four percussionists), the atmosphere felt perfectly intense. From their mid-tempo, groovy opener, each following track ramps up the atmosphere until, by the middle of the set, the audience was already bouncing to the track ‘The World is My Land’, and going wild by the time they tried to leave the stage for the first time.

Called back for the obligatory encore, the band proceeded to play a medley of two tracks over 20 minutes, echoing the shape of their set as a whole: starting fairly laid-back and ending in a riotous fashion.

Now in their 22nd year and umpteenth incarnation, it seems that Jupiter & Okwess International are finally beginning to get the recognition they, based on this performance at least, very fully deserve.

Photo: Jupiter & Okwess International by Pedro A. Pina. Used under licence CC BY-NC-SA 2.0