Gig: "Support Afrofest" Concert

"Support Afrofest" Concert (feat. Ruth Mathiang + Waleed Abdulhamid / Donné Roberts / Fojeba / Resolutionaries Marimba Band / Afrafranto)

918 Bathurst. Friday April 22, 2011.

It had been an unsettled few weeks for Music Africa, the organization that runs Afrofest. When the news came through that the city was going to revoke its permission for the use of Queen's Park, it hit many as a shock. And, frankly, as a high-handed and patently unfair gesture, given that putting together an event as large as Afrofest takes months of dedicated planning, which was already well underway. While there is doubtless some merit to worries about the long-term effects on the ever-growing festival on the park and its gorgeous trees, pulling the rug on such short notice was highly disrespectful to a top-tier cultural event that had been held at the park for two decades. Fortunately, the community rallied around the organizers and that put a lot of pressure on City Hall. This concert was part of that effort, not a fund-raiser so much as a consciousness-raiser, and an effort to broaden the organization's membership base to help keep it resilient against future crises.

And so, on a cool and windy Good Friday I was headed down to the beautiful hall at 918 Bathurst and received my membership card as I made my way in. Unsurprisingly, it was a well-organized show, with some food booths in the back and the room set up with some dancing space in front of a few rows of chairs. The night began with Music Africa president Michael Stohr announcing that Afrofest would be held in Queen's Park in 2011.

That was a positive note setting the table for Ruth Mathiang and Waleed Abdulhamid, playing together this night as an acoustic duo. Abdulhamid — a busy collaborator as well as a bandleader in his own right — was on a stool with his guitar, providing the instrumentation and backing vocals while Mathiang filled the room with her voice and bright presence. "Hopefully you won't be sitting down too long," she said to the crowd, leading with the simmering "Mama Africa",¹ the music dropping out mid-song to get the crowd clapping and singing along.

The pair offered an intriguing mix of vocal textures, with Mathiang's smooth tones next to Abdulhamid's rougher voice like a smooth cheek rubbing against a whiskered one. There were also some contrasts in the subject matter, with a solemn ballad about the costs of war in Darfur on women and children followed by a celebratory wedding song from the same region. Relative to the sparse instrumentation, there was a lot of groove going on, and I was excited at extrapolating how that would get ramped up even more with a full band.²

Listen to a track from this set here.

Donné Roberts brought a slightly stripped-down band from the last time I'd seen him, now playing without First Nations musician Marc Nadjiwan. But the cross-cultural "Afro Pow-Wow" trappings were still apparent, both in the opening instrumental and in Roberts' chanting in "Malembo". That was layered on top of some nicely irresistible Malagasy grooves, with Roberts' powerful guitar work supplemented by bass/drums/percussion and sax.³ By the time the band was playing "Wenge Yongo", the dancefloor was filling up nicely.

As I'd experienced before, there were a few points that didn't have enough grit for my palate — sax player Rich Howse (a.k.a. Isax Injah) can sometimes get a little "smooth" for my tastes, but he balanced that out with some interesting touches, such as little lurches that sounded like turntable scratches and some echo-y dub squeals during "Ariengue".

A set like this was a good chance for the band to stretch out, with just five long songs in fifty minutes. That reached its zenith with "Sadebake" going past a quarter-hour, ending the set with an extended fiery groove.⁴

Listen to a track from this set here.

As things turned over, there was a quick acoustic mini-set from Fojeba. After that super dance party, it was a bit harder for a lone guy with a guitar to hold people's attention, but did manage to get some people clapping along. Besides his hard-hitting funky zouk sound, Fojeba is also a topical songwriter, and a couple weeks before the election, he made clear his preferences with a song about Jack Layton.⁵

Already being familiar with the Resolutionaries Marimba Band, I was looking forward to another chance to see their dance-friendly and decidedly catchy grooves. Powered by Chaka Chikodzi — plus some of the younger players he has mentored — rotating between three large marimbas, the music takes traditional Zimbabwean rhythms and kicks them up to dancin' speed with a funky rhythm section.

Once again, I was struck by the strong melodic sense here. Even though this grooves a-plenty, the marimbas really have a "voice", making each song something memorable you could hum along to. The crowd was a little slow to warm up to it, but once the irrepressible "Manhanga" started, they were clapping along and dancing.

Chikodzi is also wise enough to mix things up: before the marimbas kicked in for "Shauriyako" the rhythm section backed a hip-hop freestyle (though I didn't catch the rapper's name), and the slower rhythm of "Kurima" gave everyone a chance to catch their breath. Once they get rolling, the band really gives the impression that they could simmer along for hours with this stuff. This might be the hottest band out of Peterborough right now.⁶

Listen to a track from this set here.

From what I've seen of Theo Yaw Boakye, he's not one to turn down an invitation to help out a good cause. So even if it looked like a couple members of Afrafranto were unavailable, with the help of some fill-ins Boakye had no problem putting together an entertaining set.

Most notable was the absence of guitar hero Pa Joe, so though there was a capable replacement, it was no surprise that the guitar was accented less for this show. The slack in sound was made up by a pair of keyboardists as well as a trumpet player. The presence of the latter also implied a shift in tone from the more barebones palmwine that the band has previously specialized in to more of a classic highlife sound.

With this sort of lineup, it's no surprise that it took a couple songs for the band to warm up. But once they were firing on all cylinders the set sounded closer to the non-stop groove that the band is known for — not quite the effortless segueing from tune to tune that they can do at their best, but there were a few tidy and seamless transitions here.

And though this was still danceable, it was mostly a simmering and mellow mid-tempo set of slinky rhythms, well-suited for the later part of the night. You could almost close your eyes and imagine you were in a Ghanaian nightclub where things were winding down after a sweaty night of partying. While thoroughly enjoyable, this might not have been the band at its most powerful. But it was still quite intriguing to see them working at some different ideas — some of which would subsequently be incorporated into their regular bag of tricks.

Listen to a track from this set here.

A night like this was a powerful reminder of how important Afrofest — and Music Africa behind the scenes — is at uniting the various local African music communities. It was a triumph that the community rallied to ensure that festival went ahead last summer. As of yet, there's no word on the specifics on Afrofest 2012 — the website confirms that planning is underway, but venue and dates are still unconfirmed.⁷

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¹ If that wasn't an overt enough tribute to the legendary Miriam Makeba, Mathiang also covered her songs "Hapo Zamani" and "Malaika" during the set.

² And, indeed, that would turn out to be the case, as I'd later hear.

³ Roberts' bassist is David Woodhead, who would also be notable to many readers of this blog as the father of local indie mainstays Airick and Daniel Woodhead.

⁴ With his new album Internation just out, Roberts will be playing the Lula Lounge on March 20, 2012.

⁵ Fojeba will be playing the Main Hall at The Tranzac tonight (February 24, 2012). With his full band (including, last I saw 'em, some of the same folks in Roberts' band) and horns and everything, it's a funky and fun time.

⁶ And in a piece of well-timed news, the band has just released an album (called, quite accurately, Marimba Explosion), which is available on their bandcamp. It sounds like an energetic representation of their live set.

⁷ And in the meantime, the last of Music Africa's Black History Month celebrations will be at the Gladstone Hotel's Melody Bar tonight (February 24, 2012), with a "Young Stars Night" promising some Afro jazz and Hiplife styles. Free, 9 p.m.

Recording: Fojeba

Artist: Fojeba

Song: Kokuha^*

Recorded at "African Canadians for Haiti" benefit concert, Lula Lounge, February 25, 2010.

Fojeba - Kokuha

My notes for this set can be found here.

^* Thanks to Fojeba for passing the title along, and pointing out you can get his album at CDbaby here.

Gig: African Canadians for Haiti

African Canadians for Haiti (feat. African Guitar Summit, Adam Solomon & Tikisa, Jacques Yams, Fojeba, Afrafranto, William Nkemagni, Masaisai)

Lula Lounge. Thursday, February 25, 2010.

Headed down to the Lula Lounge on a bitterly cold Thursday night with a double purpose in mind. Not only was this a chance to catch some of the best musicians in the city assembled together on one stage, but it was also a benefit, raising earthquake relief funds for Haiti. When disaster strikes, one pitches in with whatever tools are at hand, and in that spirit many of the bands that were playing, called to the show on relatively short notice, were playing with unusual line-ups, leading to some interesting spontaneous collaborations throughout the night. Meanwhile, it was an unusual sort of show for me to attend, with the Lula set up for a sit-and-have-dinner sort of show — generally a signifier of an older, more well-heeled crowd. It was reasonably busy when I arrived, but I managed to get seated at a table right up front.

Things led off with a set from Masaisai, playing in a stripped-down four-piece configuration with no mbira. This put the focus on Tich Maredza as a singer and songwriter, and he did a nice job explaining what each of the songs (sung in the Shona language, I believe) were about. With less of a rhythmic undercurrent, the music was well-suited to sitting back and listening. One (called "They shall grow up one day" in English) had a nice gentle groove and the band stretched it out, allowing guitarist Larry Lewis to lay down some tasty sounds on top of the solid rhythm section of Andrew Mark (drums) and Tichaona Gombiro (bass). Things picked up with the more upbeat "Chikende". And showing that the band can produce a dance-worthy groove without the rhythms of the mbiras and marimba, the set ended with an extended run through "Sweet Pumpkin", where Maredza set down his guitar and showed off some dance moves. Although this had a different feel than Masaisai's usual sets, it was still a fully entertaining time.

Between the musical sets, an interlude from poet William Nkemagni who spoke to the room with a strong presence. With heartfelt words, he carried a notebook but spoke without looking at it. Vibrant and interactive, Nkemagni demanded a response back from the crowd — including directing a question to a patron seated up front. Engaging and a nice fit with the evening's program.

And then, with no break, it was straight into Afrafranto's set. Also playing in a more slimmed-down configuration on this night, the band was playing as a four-piece, with no keyboards and "Golden Voice" Theo Yaa Boakye seated and adding percussion throughout. Showing his dedication, Boakye arrived at the show just a couple hours after catching a plane back to Toronto from Ghana. As with Masaisai before them, this started with the band's more relaxed side, but the set was carefully constructed so that it built up in tempo and intensity as it went along, all of it in one non-stop whir, as usual segueing from one song to the next without respite. And, of course, with the supple guitar stylings of Pa Joe throughout, making the set such a treat to listen to. Underlying it was Kofi Ackah on drums and Ebenezer Agyekum on bass — two musicians who not only play with unrelenting, groovy skill, but are also both great entertainers on the stage, always playing with smiling energy. One of the local favourites of this blog, the thirty minutes from Afrafranto was delightful throughout.

Next up was Fojeba, the night's only group that I was fully unfamiliar with coming in. It turned out to be an excellent introduction. The band played punchy, upbeat music in the makossa and zouk styles¹, keyed by Fojeba — the namesake and leader of the band — playing insistent rhythm guitar. Supported by horn players and a pair of backing vocalists, this was some excellent party music. There was no bass player at the outset, but in what appeared to be a totally spontaneous move Ebenezer Agyekum took the stage midway through the first song and joined in, remaining with the band for the rest of the set and playing fairly seamlessly with the rest of the band.

Introduced by Michael Stohr as a topical songwriter, Fojeba indeed presented the audience with a new song, "Tremblement de terre en Haiti", a quiet break in the midst of the more festive music, providing the audience with a reminder of the night's purpose. Most of the rest of the set, however, was punchy, spirited stuff. Definitely on my list to see again.

Listen to a track from this set here.

And then another short set before the stage switchover, this time from singer/guitarist Jacques Yams. Playing a similar, quick set to when I had seen him a few weeks previously, Yams' gentle voice and guitar style provided a welcome interlude between the bands. Playing to the night's theme, he also sang an appeal for everyone to get involved with helping Haiti. He stayed for just a couple quick songs before giving the stage over.

It was now about 11:30, and the early, out-for-dinner crowd had largely melted away, leaving a smaller core of musical enthusiasts. But that also meant that there was plenty of elbow room to stand and perhaps dance around some, which a few people took advantage of as Adam Solomon & Tikisa led off the final segment of the evening. Solomon, known as "The Professor", plays guitar with a natural ease, notes pouring off like water rippling over stones in a creek. I was especially looking forward to this set, never having seen Solomon playing with his own band.² It was, I was told after, another improvised lineup, with Colin Campbell, usually on rhythm guitar, filling in on bass. But it sounded fabulous regardless, the music groovy and unforced, creating a rhythm that would make it hard to stay sitting down — especially when Pa Joe joined in on the second number. As it turned out, the band played only a short set, just two longer songs stretching out to about twenty minutes, very much creating a "leave 'em wanting more" sort of taste in my mouth.

Listen to a track from this set here.

On the other hand, that meant we'd be moving along to the night's highlight all the quicker. In this configuration of African Guitar Summit Pa Joe and Adam Solomon were joined by Madagascar Slim to form an impressive front line. The latter would lead off the set with his "Salama", which was followed by Pa Joe's "Obaa Y Ewa". It goes without saying that there were guitar fireworks aplenty, in the main provided by Pa Joe and Madagascar Slim playing off each other. Although Adam Solomon would add a third level of interplay for one song, he spent more time on percussion and vocals, including leading on his "Pesa Ni u Funguo". Playing for an action-packed half-hour, there were some simply sublime moments.

Although it was a work night, yes, and bloody cold out, it's mildly surprising that a show of this calibre wasn't playing to a packed house, but the chance to see something like this in such an intimate and relaxed environment made it all the more of a special occasion for me.

Listen to a track from this set here.

Just a reminder: although we move so quickly through the "news cycle" on to the next thing and the next thing, it is important for us to remember that the unimaginable misery caused by the earthquake in Haiti is real and ongoing. A donation sent off here and a benefit concert attended there are all well and good, but there's a profound need for us to remain mindful that the task of rebuilding is just starting, and the "disaster fatigue" and short attention spans of the world's privileged cannot be an excuse for us to fail in our obligation to continue to support Haiti and its people.

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¹ The latter style, originating in the French West Indies, and being played by a musician originally from Cameroon served to illustrate the strong cross-cultural bond that provided the impetus for this show.

² Solomon, along with Tikisa percussionist Nancy Barrett also deserve praise for putting this show together.