Kibrom Birhane - Kibrom's Tizita [2014] [ethiopia]

visit his website here >  http://www.kibromusika.com/

             Kibrom Birhane is Ethiopian Pianist, Multi Instrumentalist / producer / songwriter / Record / Mix engineer, arranger and composer passionate about Ethiopian folk, world, pop, jazz and gospel music. 

                 Kibrom started his musical career in a very early stage of his life, and had the opportunity to work, perform and record with musicians from all over the world. While attending Los Angeles College of music, he was fortunate to learn under great musicians such as: Sean Halley (Vinnie Colaiuta, Jerry Marotta, Richard Marx), Andre Knecht, Andrew Murdock (Godsmack, Alice Cooper, Linkin Park), Dave Pozzi (Celine Dion, Diana Krall), Howie Shear (George Benson, Stevie Wonder), Tony Inzalaco (Oscar Peterson, Dexter Gordon) and many others.

Kibrom Birhane - Zelesegna  ዘለሰኛ

           Learning how to play the krar, a five stringed traditional Ethiopian lyre, at age 8, Kibrom Birhane found himself enthralled by Orthodox chanting. “Always it moves me when I hear music,” he says. And from that time on he knew he wanted to pursue a career in music. Kibrom eventually began teaching piano to other students for about three years before receiving a scholarship to attend the Los Angeles College of Music where he developed a passion beyond Ethiopian folk music, and became a songwriter and composer focusing on the fusion of Ethiopian folk with jazz and gospel sounds. His debut album entitled ‘Kibrom’s Tizita’ was recently released by Tsehai Records, a new division of Tsehai Publishers. Kibrom describes his new album as “an exploration of Ethiopian heritage through folk and pop music with a jazz backbone.”

           Kibrom is also a record and mixing engineer and says he “learned to play all of these different roles over time, and with that came new innovations” in his music and sound. His solo pieces are among his most personal works, and Kibrom shares that they are “an expression of what I feel at the moment. I don’t study or learn solos; I just play them.”

           Kibrom hopes to reach the younger generation with his music. He sees the power of fusion as a way to expose individuals to Ethiopian music while adopting a style that is already familiar to them (such as jazz). Kibrom has already garnered some success including writing the score for the documentary film ‘Sincerely Ethiopia,’ singing in the award-winning documentary ‘Get Together Girls,’ and composing music for the documentary on the African Union’s 50th year celebration.

     “The raw sincerity of Birhane’s music seeks to make strong connections with listeners as they are transported on a musical journey. And a journey it is – Kibrom uses Ethiopian scales, which are rarely heard in Western music. The distinct nature of these scales makes for hypnotic listening,” states Tsehai Records.

Kibrom Birhane - 01 - Pending Prayer (4:06)

Kibrom Birhane - 02 - Yonas Gorfe Tribute (5:10)

Kibrom Birhane - 03 - Simagne Hageree (4:25)

Kibrom Birhane - 04 - Wazema (5:26)

Kibrom Birhane - 05 - Broken but Beautiful (10:06)

Kibrom Birhane - 06 - Jiret (7:02)

Kibrom Birhane - 07 - Psalm 92 (4:47)

Kibrom Birhane - 08 - Kibrom's Tizita (feat. Etsegenet Mekonnen) (5:03)

Kibrom Birhane - 09 - Zelesegna (4:30)

Kibrom Birhane - 10 - Ambassel (feat. Etsegenet Mekonnen) (4:34)

Mahmoud Ahmed with Ibex Band - Jeguol Naw Betwa [1978, reissue 2011] [ethiopia]

   R   E   U   P   L   O   A   D   

           Mississippi records continues their tradition of re-releasing obscure and out of print music from all around the world, this time tackling legendary Ethiopian singer Mahmoud Ahmed.  

       Apparently this album of blistering african pop had never been reissued since it's original pressing, so I'm quite thankful that Mississippi did the legwork and got this back out into the ears of everyone. 

       Mahmoud Ahmed is the greatest Ethiopian singer of all time. His recordings with the Ibex Band are proper sweet, even awesome. This album, first released in 1978, is a world music classic. Album has been remastered quite brilliantly by Tim Stollenwerk. 

      

       Recorded at the end of the 'golden age' of Ethiopian urban music, Mahmoud is in top form belting out transcendent intense vocals over the Ibex Bands' hypnotic soulful horns, organs, guitars, bass & percussion. As good as it gets & as close to universally perfect music as ever has been made.

1. Mahmoud Ahmed - Bemin Sebeb Litlash / (4:30)
2. Mahmoud Ahmed - Anwedim Tekatin / (5:21)
3. Mahmoud Ahmed - Gebtewat Yihon Fikrien (5:46)
4. Mahmoud Ahmed - Jeguol Naw Betwa (3:34)
5. Mahmoud Ahmed - Endet Lilakek (4:16)
6. Mahmoud Ahmed - Neshtie / (5:16)
7. Mahmoud Ahmed - Fetsum Dink Lij Nesh / (4:41)
8. Mahmoud Ahmed - Hoy Na-Na Jegnaw Na / (4:40)
9. Mahmoud Ahmed - Marie Gela / (4:37)

Feedel Band - various songs [usa+eth]

        Feedel Band is a Washington DC based Ethio-Jazz Band and has been performing as a self contained unit, as well as supporting Ethiopian artists like Tilahun Gessesse, (The king of Ethiopian pop music), very recently with Aster Aweke (The queen of Ethiopian soul music) on her current “Ewedihalehu” or "I love you" US tour.

       Feedel band’s is founded in 2010 by Araya Woldemichael, and weeks later, his current band members joined him and together they have formed the first native Ethiopian group in north America as an Ethio -jazz music-oriented band that starred Moges Habte on Sax, Alemseged Kebede on Electric bass, Araya Woldemichael on keyboards and Samson Juffar on drums. After Samson Juffar’s departure to Ethiopia, drummer and percussionist Mikias Abebayehu took Samson’s place. In addition to guitarist Kaleb Temesgen and  drummer J , Trombonist Ben Hall and krarist Minale Bezu, the band found Its own and a very unique Ethio - jazz  sound. 

       Feedel or (alphabet) are Ge’ez script and a unique Ethiopian characters that are entirely phonetic structured in seven columns. In other words, each character in the Geez Feedel system has seven sounds. Feedel are not only a dazzling of human creativity but also, in practical terms, a powerful medium for communication and social interaction. The power of Feedel resides in the characters ability to represent virtually every sound. The ancient Ethiopians, who invented Ethiopic writing system, were poised, it seems, to capture and harness all sounds in the universe.

Feedel Band - Belhame

            Since 1997 the Éthiopiques series has made Ethiopian music a hipster obsession, exposing jazz heads and rockists to the jazzy funkiness that emanated from East Africa in the ’60s and ’70s. (Never heard of the collection? You may have heard songs from Volume 4—there are now 29 volumes in total—in Jim Jarmusch’s 2005 film Broken Flowers.) 

             Feedel’s sax player Moges who was born in Addis Ababa, and can be heard performing the funky James Brown Band-influenced cut “Muziqawi Silt” on Éthiopiques’ Volume 13 with his ’70s group The Walias Band. On the other hand Feedel's bass player Alemseged  Kebede's great  groovy bass lines can be found in Aster Aweke and Tilahune Gessesse's music. Feedel Band’s sound can best be described as a merging of ’60s R&B, funk and jazz with traditional Ethiopian songcraft. 

Feedel Band - Araya's Mood

       Feedel Band is taking Ethiopian music and Jazz, and blending it into a simmering stew of musical genre’s, textures and feeling. These boys have real feel – for their music, for their audience and for each other. Playing with maturity and passion is second nature to all of them ... 

       Feedel band has devoted much of a creative career spanning almost 20 years to this eternal, inspiring form - the very base and roots of Ethio-jazz.... gather inspiration from The Golden Age of Ethiopian popular music in the late 1960s and 70s— a time that had Addis Ababa littered with groups playing a brass-heavy concoctions influenced by American soul and jazz. So here they are, as enthusiastic as ever - Ethiopian's finest, most skilled practitioners in the art of the Ethiopian music. They take their newly created original pentatonic melodies and repurpose them with mutated instrumentation like 60s and 70s-era Ethiopian grooves: Congas, electric Guitar, Bass, Saxophone, traditional Krar, Masinko, Piano, Organ, Trombone and Drums. 

     What sets Feedel Band apart from other acts that play Ethio-Jazz style of music is that they commonly hybridize the regular Jazz style with Ethio-Jazz genres, or modernized the sound with out loosing its original traditional texture or feeling. The energy and power is overwhelming. They are creating and in some cases re-creating the musical language of what has been called Ethio -Jazz. 

      Since the bands inception, the reception that Feedel has received has been extraordinary. At FestAfrica 2011, APAP showcase "Drom" New York City, World cafe live Philadelphia, Global roots festival Minneapolis, MN and  most recently at The Kennedy Center in 2014 and the audience was enamored with their warm and engaging style. While their music is inspired by the Golden Age of Ethiopian popular music, but Feedel Band always perform their own original music. 

       Their newly released CD is called “Ethiopian Ocean” 

                           Feedel Band on Soundcloud : here   

   Feedel Band official site : here   

01 - Feedel Band - Tropicalia 8-2-14 (6:21)

02 - Feedel Band - Araya's Mood (8:24)

03 - Feedel Band - Girl from Ethiopia (7:35)

04 - Feedel Band - Ethiopian Ocean (Ye Ethiopia Baher) (10:32)

05 - Feedel Band - Behelme (5:54)

06 - Feedel Band - Feedel Band (8:01)

07 - Feedel Band - Mestafaker (6:41)

Arki Sound - Arki Sound [2015] [usa+eth]

Arki Sound

Arki Sound - 'Jazeta' (Tezeta)

Influenced by the classic recordings made in Ethiopia in the 1960s and 1970s, Arki Sound performs music for your dancing and listening pleasure.

01 - Arki Sound - Bemen Sebeb Letlash (5:31)

02 - Arki Sound - Ere Mela Mela Dubby Spoil (2:51)

03 - Arki Sound - Ere Mela Mela (5:02)

04 - Arki Sound - Gaddis Addis (4:18)

05 - Arki Sound - Hedetch Alew (3:26)

06 - Arki Sound - Jazeta Love a Dub in Outer Space (5:29)

07 - Arki Sound - Jezeta (6:32)

08 - Arki Sound - Kulun Mankwalesh (5:22)

Formed in New York City in 2009, Arki Sound consists of:

Marcus Cummins - alto and soprano saxophones
Frank Marino - drum kit
Samson Kebede - bass
George Taylor - guitar
Andy JordanTexas - tenor (emeritus)

Ethioda - Araray [2013] [fra+ethiopia]

       Ethioda (Montpellier) is a group that revisits the Ethiopian jazz through original compositions, improvisations and electro atmospheres. The Ethio-jazz whose golden age is in the 70s (remember Mahmoud Ahmed and his "Ere Mela Mela") leaves reappear east, funk and reggae sounds.

Ethioda - Araray

"Fly to the rhythms, a round and warm, flights of fancy jazz-electro hair-raising ... sudden urge to move your shoulders? No doubt, this is the call of the highlands of Abyssinia, which sounds in music Ethioda! An invitation to travel through an intoxicating music. "

       Inspired by the famous recordings "Ethiopiques' 70s, of the Montpellier Ethioda decide to put their two cents in a musical style that goes well beyond the regions of Addis Ababa. 

Group compositions and arrangements of traditional songs to the jungle sauce, any excuse is good in these addicts trance to drive the audience into the dance, amid endless crazy solos and grooves!

         It was in September 2013 that the group decided to record his first album "Araray." 

The Ethiopian word "araray" (Amharic) denotes a range of five notes you play for big festive occasions. 

This word alone can evoke the process of Ethioda Group:

take the audience to dance, while offering a very instrumental and improvised music in a festive atmosphere.

        Araray is also the name of one of the group's compositions, where the influence of Ethiopian music crosses syncope Jamaican reggae.

01 - Ethioda - En plein dans le Nil (6:00)

02 - Ethioda - Bati (5:46)

03 - Ethioda - Metche new (6:06)

04 - Ethioda - Gedawo (4:24)

05 - Ethioda - Araray (4:54)

06 - Ethioda - Amlak abet abet (6:16)

07 - Ethioda - Musiqawi Silt (4:34)

musicians : 

Daniel Moreau (piano), 

Baptiste Clerc (guitar), 

Armel Courrée (saxophones), 

Pascal Bouvier (trombone), 

Romain Delorme (bass), 

Julien Grégoire (drums). 

Mulatu Astatke - Mochilla presents timeless Mulatu Astatke [2010] [ethiopia]

   R   E   U   P   L   O   A   D   

Mulatu Astatke - Timeless (Live)

       Ethiopian composer/arranger/vibraphonist Mulatu Astatke reached a lot of Western ears in the ‘90s when the fourth installment of the Ethiopiques series featured his work. That album presented innovative recordings from the ‘60s and ‘70s that fused jazz and Ethiopian sounds. Astatke got more exposure when some of his pieces were used in the soundtrack for Jim Jarmusch’s Broken Flowers. 

       

       In 2009, Astatke and a fine group of American musicians performed at California State University, Los Angeles, and Timeless captures the concert. Featured players include woodwinds wizard Benny Maupin, former McCoy Tyner sideman Azar Lawrence on tenor sax, and trombonist and Tribe veteran Phil Ranelin. A number of younger players also make contributions, including keyboardist Brandon Coleman, violist Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, and trumpeter Todd Simon, who displays a nice feel for Ethiopian scales. 

     Astatke’s vibraphone solos are always welcome, and if you had to pick a standout track it would be “Mulatu,” where the band finds a deep groove.

1. Mulatu Astatke - Yèkèrmo Sèw (7:32)

2. Mulatu Astatke - The Radcliffe (8:29)

3. Mulatu Astatke - I Faram Gami (7:45)

4. Mulatu Astatke - Yèkatit (7:15)

5. Mulatu Astatke - Kasaléfkut Hulu (8:05)

6. Mulatu Astatke - Mulatu (7:10)

7. Mulatu Astatke - Munayé (7:47)

8. Mulatu Astatke - Yègellé Tezeta (5:24)

9. Mulatu Astatke - Ebo Lala (6:31)

Bass Clarinet, Flute, Soprano Saxophone – Bennie Maupin

Drums – Tony Austin

Drums [Hand], Percussion – Munyungo Jackson

Electric Bass, Acoustic Bass – Trevor Ware

Electric Guitar – Dan Ubick

Electric Piano, Piano, Organ – Brandon Coleman

Percussion – Alan Lightner

Tenor Saxophone – Azar Lawrence

Trombone – Joel Yennior, Phil Ranelin

Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Todd Simon

Viola – Miguel Atwood-Ferguson

Vibraphone, Percussion – Mulatu Astatke

v.a. - new ethio grooves [2014] [ethiopia]

Warm regards to all the readers of my blog. 

Regular followers have probably noticed that the usual Christmas present is late this year, but it does not mean that it will not arrive.

And here it is !

It is only fitting that we end the year with a short overview.This time, it is a compilation of the recent work of the bands whose music is influenced by the Ethiopian sound.

I am not going to bore you a lot. You have come to know most of the authors form this compilation through the posts on my blog, but there is something completely new as well. You will find out for yourself what it is. 

I wish you lots of health, happiness and love in the new year. And lots of interesting music, of course. 

B.

   cd 1  

01 - Nadav Haber - Nanu Nanu Jazz (6:13)

02 - Elias Negash - My Eyes Are Hungry (6:55)

03 - New Constellations - Rift Valley (4:51)

04 - Ethioda - Araray (5:09)

05 - Akalé Wubé - Kidus à cent dix (5:17)

06 - Akalé Wubé - Gab's Trap (4:00)

07 - Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Che Belew (4:02)

08 - Arat Kilo - Ankober Hotel (3:42)

09 - Les Frères Smith - Yègellé Tezeta (My Own Memory) (4:58)

   cd 2  

01 - KAZANCHIS +1 - Bilemo Bilee (6:00)

02 - KAZANCHIS +1 - Agerwa Wasa Magana (5:36)

03 - KAZANCHIS +1 - Astawusalehu (5:34)

04 - Feedel Band - Girl from Ethiopia (7:35)

05 - Feedel Band - Arayas Mood (8:24)

06 - Black Flower - Upwards (4:58)

07 - The Shaolin Afronauts - Abyssinian Suite, Pt. 1 (5:28)

08 - The Shaolin Afronauts - Abyssinian Suite, Pt. 2 (5:07)

09 - The Shaolin Afronauts - Abyssinian Suite, Pt. 3 (3:44)

Imperial Tiger Orchestra - [2013] - Wax [swiss+ethiopia]

Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Le Le Le

       After two albums and a short but well-documented history, Imperial Tiger Orchestra (aka the Tigers) strikes back with a mighty new album, “Wax”, comprising nine killer tracks of tight funk and free-spirited trance wrapped in luscious arrangements. Still inspired by African masters – but not necessarily those you might have thought of – The Tigers have this time delved into the traditional azmari repertoire to uncover astonishing nuggets of synth- and horn-heavy grooviness. Get ready for a journey into the heart of Ethiopia.

          When Imperial Tiger Orchestra first started unravelling the yarn of Ethiopian Music from the Golden Age (1969 – 1975), no one expected the thread to be so long and no one knew where it might end.

          Inspired by original albums that the band found while shopping for rare musical gems on a first visit to Addis Ababa in 2009, Imperial Tiger Orchestra released a first record in 2010, the aptly-named Addis Abeba, which explored

          Ethiopian music from the 70s – when traditional Ethiopian brass bands began feeding off American soul. The second release, Mercato, veered towards a more pop-inspired repertoire from the 80s, and the latest release goes one step further, taking the listener deeper into Ethiopian culture, from the unique sounds of the azmari repertoire to the hypnotic groove of the major tribes.

       After three years touring Europe, Imperial Tiger Orchestra has acquired a solid reputation as a mighty groove machine. The band has also taken its acid riffs to the African continent, touring South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe back in 2010. Having been invited to Addis Ababa by the renowned producer of the Ethiopiques series, Francis Falceto, the Tigers were proud to meet many of the local musicians who work to reshape traditional Ethiopian music. Based in and around Geneva, Switzerland, Imperial Tiger Orchestra has also worked with musicians and dancers from the Ethiopian diaspora, receiving their rewarding approval and blessing for their own original take on Ethiopian music.

        Wax: 80s synths meet traditional kebero percussions and daring rhythms. Gorgeous horn arrangements enwrap powerful bass lines and saturated electronic beats. All of this in a room where the sun pierces through the walls, where spirits dance and bodies are entranced.

   tracklist   

1. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Konso    06:19 

2. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Lelele    04:55

3. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Yasheryshery   05:33 

4. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Bechereka moshete   05:15 

5. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Che Belew    04:01

6. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Shered    03:21

7. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Tgeregna   07:03

8. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - El Naas Elgiafa   04:38

9. Imperial Tiger Orchestra - Sudani Tune   04:16 

   band members :  

Raphael Anker - trumpet, keyboard 

John Menoud - sax, electronics 

Alexandre Rodrigues - keyboards 

Cyril Moulas - bass, phin, krar, guitar 

Luc Detraz - kebero, pads, kayamb 

Julien Israelian - drums, wax machine 

Getu Tirfe - dance 

Emebet Tezazu - dance