from the album: Negus of Ethiopian Sax
Getatchew Mekurya is a sax player whose inspiration comes from traditional warrior music: the kind meant to whip soldiers into a frenzy before battle. And frenzied his playing truly is, with several shades of free jazz at its most abandoned (which, curiously, he claims never to have heard). It's wild stuff -- but wild only on the sax. The band behind him exists strictly for melodic and rhythmic function. While they perform admirably, they add little to the music itself, while the sax takes off on weird and wonderful paths.
All Comments