Addis-dale

This 2019 release from Leeds based ATA Records is a bit of an enigma. I bought it on the strength of a single play of a single track and the quoted endorsement by Mulatu Astatke, the father of Ethiopian Jazz. I was lucky enough to catch him playing with the Heliocentrics a few years back, and anything that apparently prompts the great man to exclaim, "It's cool! This is great. Give me the cd, man!" had to be something special, right? 

And I do quite like this album. To be clear, I quite like it. There are some interesting ideas here, and the vibe overall is good, clearly drawing on Ethio-jazz among other inspirations. The band sounds tight, the arrangements are fine ... there's just something missing that I couldn't nail down at first. 

After several plays, I think it's just that the band never really seems to get out of third gear. With a couple of exceptions, the musicians feel restrained, as if they've been told to behave themselves. The overall feel is very safe, which is a shame because there are some quality players in the mix. 

"The Sorcerers are the Ethiopiques of the modern age," says Jazzman Gerald. Though I share his dislike of Kenny G, I can't agree with him on that statement. And I'm sorry, but I'm not picking up even the vaguest whimper of Moondog, whatever the promo copywriter says.

This is a pleasant enough album but, to me at least, it's way too polite. 

It lacks oomph. 

Maybe they're a whole different band live but, on this evidence, I'd have to say, "the Sorcerers are the Ethiopiques for birthday parties, weddings and bah-mitzvas."

Cool album cover though.

https://sorcerers.bandcamp.com/album/the-sorcerers

Where the hell've you been?

... I don't, in all honesty, hear you ask.

Fact is that life, work and a large dollop of demotivation have all got in the way over the last ... I don't believe it - NEARLY TWO YEARS. All my legions of readers would without a doubt have deserted me by now, so it's lucky that I didn't have legions of readers. Sort of. 


Enter Covid19. Just over a week into lockdown, I'm bored with scouring Bandcamp and I've catalogued my entire CD collection on Discogs. I've got no work, or any sign of getting any in the near future, and all the gigs I had lined up over the next few months have been pulled. 


I've even been unceremoniously relieved of all the voluntary website management I was doing for a local club, which will remain nameless, so how else am I going to fill the hours I normally spend slumped in front of a keyboard?

So ... loads of gigs under the bridge and a small fortune wisely invested in shiny plastic discs later, I'm taking to the Blogosphere once more. Standby for more hugely subjective gig and album reviews, random musings and anything else I feel like throwing out there.