Welcome to a new installment of "Earth Tones," the music column that seeks to redefine the word "eclectic." This time around, Saffire lives up to its name, Green Linnet looks back, Cesaria Evora follows up a Grammy nomination, and Baaba Maal gets back to basics. Plus, San Francisco's Pandemonaeon make Pagan music almost in our backyard.
First out of the gate, I'd like to present the latest studio release from Saffire: The Uppity Blues Women, and for those of you who may not be familiar with this brash, outspoken trio from Virginia, their name is no misnomer. These women are intelligent, incisive, witty, and determined not to shut up. The new one is called Ain't Gonna Hush! and features members Ann Rabson, Andra Faye, and Gaye Adegbalola (whose solo album Bitter Sweet Blues was one of the best blues releases of 1999) on the cover with megaphones and attitudinal grins. Saffire recall one of the most important and least remembered traditions of the blues. As music created by people who were (and often still are) systematically oppressed, the blues is a powerful vehicle for calling attention to wrongs that are social as well as personal. Past releases have included songs addressing domestic violence ("1-800-799-7233"), the inequalities pervading the U.S. prison system (an adaptation of Bessie Smith's "Jail House Blues"), and more. Likewise, this time around, they sympathetically highlight the inherent ironies of the Sharon Bottoms case with "Blues for Sharon Bottoms." (For those unfamiliar with this case: Bottoms, who is a lesbian, lost custody of her child -- to her own mother.) Saffire have also had plenty of opportunities to learn the necessity of personal independence, and they're careful to point this out on "It Takes a Mighty Good Man" (the rest of the lyric, by the way, is "To be better than no man at all") and "Once in Awhile." Lest they be accused of male-bashing, however, Saffire also include plenty of paeans to the joys of sex and love with "Nobody Ever Touched Me There," "Footprints on the Ceiling," "He Really Makes It Hard for Me to Sing the Blues," and the touchingly sweet "Coffee Flavored Kisses" (now that's the best part of waking up!). And Saffire are also aware that the older we get, the more we're inclined to appreciate the time we get on this Earth; whether they're being humorous ("Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die)") or bittersweet ("If I Should Die Tonight"), they clearly believe in making the most of it, and that they certainly do.
Just in time for August, the appropriately named Lúnasa present their second release, The Merry Sisters of Fate, on the highly-regarded Green Linnet label (see below). The ensemble, which includes flute, fiddle, whistles, Uilleann pipes, guitars, and bass, winds its way through eleven instrumental selections, most of which are traditional, but some of which are original compositions courtesy of guitarist Donogh Hennessy. Green Linnet is known for releasing high-quality, no-bullshit Irish music, and Lúnasa are no exception -- for proof, head straight to track 4, a rip-roaring rendition of the title piece that's as evocative as it is entertaining; you can almost see the dancers in your mind's eye. Keep an ear on this group; we're bound to hear a great deal more from them in the future. (This and the following selection both include some excellent music for ritual, by the way, and between these two collections you've got plenty from which to choose.)
Speaking of Green Linnet, the label celebrates its twenty-fifth anniversary with the aptly titled Green Linnet Records: 25 Years of Celtic Music. While you can pick up almost anything this label releases and be confident that you're getting the good stuff, this two-CD set is an excellent sampler (be wary: the first copy of this I acquired had only one CD in the package. If this happens to you, just take it back to the store for an exchange). Plenty of names familiar to fans of Irish music are found here, including Altan, Capercaillie, Riverdance veteran Eileen Ivers, and more. Many of the tunes are also instantly recognizable to even the most casual fan of Celtic music: Déanta's rendition of "The Rocky Reels," for instance, or Andy M. Stewart and Mánus Lunny's "The Houghs of Cromdale," or label founder Kevin Burke's version of "The Butterfly." This isn't merely a celebration of Green Linnet's 25 years of existence; it's a celebration of the incredible richness and variety of this genre, especially as it expands in popularity and takes on new influences, inflections, and directions around the world.
Speaking of global influences, Afro-Celt Sound System continues to leap tall musical categories in a single bound with Volume 3: Further in Time. The name of the pan-folk-meets-world-beat ensemble is singularly appropriate, though most of the rhythms and melodies they use are, indeed, African and/or Celtic flavored (there's more similarity, depending of course on particular cultures of origin, than you might think), with some distinctly modern electronics adding a unique spin. Afro-Celt Sound System also avoid the usual pitfall of groups like this, where they stick to the gimmick so thoroughly that every track sounds the same. Quite the opposite: there's a lot of variety here, from the trance-world rhythms of "North" to the distinctly Celtic "Colossus," to "Life Begin Again," which features a bit of the traditional tune "The Lark's Elegy" and vocals from Robert Plant. There are plenty of other guest stars as well, including Nawazish Ali Khan, Pina Kollars, Mairead Ni Mhaonaigh, and Peter Gabriel.
Speaking of Peter Gabriel, there's a new compilation, appropriately titled Dream in Red: The Music of Peter Gabriel (Koch) out, courtesy of something called the American Rock Orchestra. The members of this group (including a guitarist named Pat Buchanan, poor guy) are names in their respective fields -- drummer Dave Weckl, for instance, is known as a "drummer's drummer," the sort of guy the rest of us stand in line to take workshops from. This is by way of saying that there is considerable technical excellence to be found on this album; unfortunately it doesn't always translate into astounding music. To my opinionated mind, a tribute album -- which this certainly is -- should attempt to in some measure reinterpret the music to which it is paying tribute. While there's some good stuff here -- "Red Rain" is particularly good -- the group's choice of primarily slower, lower-key material works against them. Most of this collection wouldn't be out of place on a film soundtrack. The problem with that, of course, is that when you're watching a movie, the score isn't what you're meant to be paying attention to.
Far more exciting is the new album from Cesaria Evora, São Vicente (Windham Hill). Though the Windham Hill label isn't known for producing exciting music, Evora's Café Atlantico scored a Grammy nomination for a reason. While it's not exactly pulse-pounding, São Vicente is quite evocative in a particularly worldly way. Evora is from Cape Verde, the indigenous music of which is a mix of West African, Portuguese, Brazilian, and British influences, making for a surprisingly unified whole. There's something very relaxed about this music, even the more dramatic pieces, such as "Tiempo Y Silencio." The Mediterranean feel is to be expected, of course, as is the downright danceability of the majority of the tracks -- it's easy to imagine swaying under the stars to "Sabôr de Pecado," or jamming on a pier somewhere to "Dor di Amor" or "Nutridinha." It's been said that a television commercial sung in Spanish is prettier than any German opera, and Evora definitely takes advantage of her language's inherent musicality; her rich voice slides over the ear like water. This music takes awhile to sink in, as the CD becomes progressively more involving the longer you listen. Perfect summertime music.
Speaking of perfect summertime music, Senegalese singer-songwriter Baaba Maal returns to his roots with Missing You (Mi Yeewnii) (Palm). This all-acoustic collection of West African music is an aural delight, plumbing the depths of a set of interconnected musical traditions that have had enormous influence on music in America -- you can hear the inflections of blues and folk here, but this is where elements of those genres came from, not where they've led. Not, need it be said, that this is the only reason to give Missing You a spin. Maal is a master at his art, and his music is unremittingly beautiful. For those of you with the technological wherewithal, the CD includes a video and an interview with Maal, shot in Nbunk, Senegal where the album was recorded.
On a more local front, we have the cleverly named Pandemonaeon from San Francisco, with their self-titled album from Trance Jam. I have to admit that when a band describes itself as "tribal trance rock," I experience a reaction rather akin to physical pain -- but that's not the fault of the band in question, and in the case of Pandemonaeon, I was pleasantly surprised. To begin with, there's a distinctly Middle Eastern feel to their music; now, granted, a dumbek -- an hourglass-shaped, double-headed drum often to be found in drum circles -- tends to convey that impression, but the melodies and backup harmonies contribute as well. Guitarist Winter (first and last name, evidently), one suspects, has some SoCal-style hard rock somewhere in his past, judging by some of the solos and bass lines he comes up with. As the band's name implies, Pandemonaeon have a distinctly Pagan outlook; the songs "Serpentina," "Sunny Simone" (which has a killer chorus, by the way), and "Word of Honor" in particular explore some of the byways of Pagan thought and idea. The one drawback of this CD is that one suspects that Pandemonaeon has more energy live than is conveyed on this recording. This isn't an uncommon experience, especially for bands unused to a studio environment, so I'm curious to see what this group does in the future.
On a final note, it looks like local folk-fusioneers (they may resent this term, but it's the best I could come up with) Kultur Shock may finally release another CD, possibly in late August. Starting off as a folk ensemble from their musically rich region of origin (eastern Europe), over the years they've added American bandmates and a variety of musical influences from rock to hip-hop to jazz. Since they're a personal favorite, I couldn't close this column without mentioning them. If the CD does come out soon, expect a review in a forthcoming edition of Earth Tones.
Genevieve Williams is a Seattle freelance writer and the drummer for Murder of Crows. She can be reached at rimrun@drizzle.com with feedback, suggestions, or recommendations. Local musicians are encouraged to submit material for review.