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CD Review
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Amazon.com, CD Review >>
Anyone enthralled by the sprawling Ethiopiques series on Buda Musique may find a fascinating if unintentional addition to that series in Abyssinia Infinite's Zion Roots. Whereas the Ethiopiques series lovingly compiles far-flung tracks recorded during the "golden age" of the Ethiopian record industry in the early to mid-1970s, Zion Roots is an illustration of the astounding creativity and life still coursing through modern Ethiopian music. Although Abyssinia Infinite boasts a cast of Ethiopian musicians alongside producer Bill Laswell (heard here on acoustic guitar) and some of his frequent collaborators like percussionists Karsh Kale and Aiyb Dieng and accordionist Tony Cedras, this is essentially the second album by Gigi, the Ethiopian singer with an overworldly voice whose self-titled debut featured her alongside such jazz heavyweights as Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. Fans of a more traditional Ethiopian or world-beat sound may be pleased to discover that "Zion Roots" is a much more organic-sounding recording than was that album or its Bill Laswell remix, Illuminated Audio. While there are some modern production elements here that bear Laswell's stamp, like backwards acoustic guitar effects and layered keyboards, for the most part this is acoustic trance music that never loses its connection to the traditional songs--in some cases hundreds of years old--Gigi sings here in new arrangements. On tracks like "Gela," which features a mesmerizing kirar (an ancient Ethiopian harp) pattern, the richly percussive "Gedawo" or the entrancing hymn "Ethiopia" that closes the album, Gigi proves that Ethiopian music has a bright future as well as a rich past. --Ezra Gale 11/20/03 >> go there
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