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Record
of the month
January 2004
Abyssinia Infinite
featuring Ejigayehu "Gigi" Shibabaw
Zion
Roots (Network 24.971)
This
album takes a little while to sink in but once it has taken hold, it doesn't
let go.
For
me, it all comes into focus on 'Emba Ashafergne'. Within seconds, our
shoulders dip to syncopated handclaps, funky accordion and burbling percussion.
Weaving her way through the beats comes the young Ethiopian singer Gigi,
answering a phrase from the accordion, waiting for its reply, moving on.
Every vocal sound is stretched, held, carried forward, upwards and back
down again; are these actual words, or simply sounds made by a playful
singer? I don't know and I don't care; whatever she's doing, it works.
On Aba Alem Lemenea, the tempo drops and a new texture is brought in as
a saxophone section takes over as the backdrop to the plaintive vocals.
Only the hardest of hearts have not been melted by now.
The convoluted artist credit needs a little explanation. 'Zion Roots by
Abyssinia Infinite featuring Ejigayehu "Gigi" Shibabaw' does
not exactly roll effortlessly off the tongue. Over the past decade the
German label Network Medien has released albums under the name of 60 different
regions or countries, most of them recorded in the country in question.
But while Zion Roots is a tribute to the devotional songs of Ethiopia,
it is far from an authentic location recording. Gigi is a professional
singer who lives in the US, where she recorded with the producer Bill
Laswell. Hence Abyssinia Infinite, a poetic way of saying Virtual Ethiopia
- a homeland of the imagination. And there's nothing wrong with that -
most great records are magical tricks of one kind or another.
Gigi’s first album, also produced by Bill Laswell, was a thoroughly
modern dance album, recorded with the finest New York session musicians
and made unique by the singer’s unusual vocals. As good as it was,
it felt like an American singer could have found a way to fit into those
grooves. This time, although some of the same musicians are involved again,
there is an additional contingent of Ethiopians, the rhythms are more
sophisticated, and it would be a brave American singer who would dare
to slip into these musical shoes. Might Nina Simone have tried them on
for size? Would Norah Jones consider the challenge? I doubt it. But whoever
likes either of them should hear this, a last-minute qualifier for my
top 10 albums of last year and a great way to launch this one.
An edited version of this review appeared in the Observer Music Monthly, January 2004
CG
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