Artifacts (2016)

BRUSSELS VISIT AFRICA.....

music albums

Artifacts

Artifacts is all about healing souls, structured around the words of a surreal and half-remembered spiritual incident in Greece. But it is also about musical cross-pollination, blending melodies, beats and instruments from an arc across Africa, Asia, and Europe.
Black Flower have mastered combining modern western rhythms with an unexpected and wonderful array of instruments. The eerie horns of Alexandria combine baritone parps and klezmer-tinged cornet returning Woeter Haest's clavinet lines, all over a bouncing electronic beat. This Budos Band-esque groove slips into the tinkling ride and pressing bass of Helios Victor, replete with robust squawking, roaring saxophones, and long chord Zuton choruses.
While there is much middle-eastern influence, it is still in the rhythms and flourishes of Ethiojazz that Black Flower really impress. The sinuous and shifting High Upon the Mountain High upon the Hill brings in Éthiopique sounds through its pentatonic descents and climbs, and notes which chase each other without coming up for air, Abeyo Zeybekiko a confident jaunty ethio-balkan anthem.
However the album opener, Bones, is really the stand out track, having the honour of opening Gilles Peterson's 6Music slot on Saturday, too. Full of frantic flighty flute chopping its way over a regal rhythm section, Bones is an instant Ethiojazz classic – a ponderous Astatke homage which sounds both fresh yet familiar.

Artifacts is full of interesting composition, clean production, and a strong underlying groove.
This is listening music. Artifacts makes for a strong listen on the sofa, but I'm certain would also make a completely infectious live set.