Fendika & K-Sanchis, GOJO, Switzerland, 121234.records, FBL 007 vinyl LP (2023)
Released early in 2023, “GOJO” is the result of a collaboration formed by Melaku Belay of Fendika Cultural Center and saxophonist / sound engineer Jeroen Visser of Trio Kazanchis who between them assembled ten-piece band Fendika & K-Sanchis to perform traditional Ethiopian melodies and rhythms using a mix of Ethiopian traditional / folk instruments and Western instruments, technologies and music elements and structures including free improvisation. The resulting recording is a tasteful, lively and sometimes raw presentation of music harking back to the glory days of Ethiopian jazz of the 1950s through the 1970s before the scene was squelched entirely by the 1974 Ethiopian Revolution and the Qey Shibir (Red Terror) of former army officer / politician Mengistu Haile Mariam following soon after. With Nardos Wude Tesfaw on soulful vocals leading the way, Fendika & K-Sanchis presents music from different regions of Ethiopia with unusual combinations of native Ethiopian and Western instruments in a jazz band context.
The songs may feature traditional folk tunes that may have existed for hundreds of years, yet when delivered by Fendika & K-Sanchis, they sound very much like a soundtrack for an action thriller or even spy film featuring kung fu and other martial arts that were all the rage in the early 1970s. The melodies are very distinctive, especially when accompanied by lyrics sung by Nardos Tesfaw who adds urgency to them. Traditional instruments such as krar and masenqo, here electrified, share lead solos with baritone saxophone while the bulk of the accompanying music is made up of horn arrangements and percussion that includes a drum kit and a kebero, a hand drum used in Ethiopian and Eritrean music. No matter what combinations of Ethiopian and other instruments are used, the musicians all play smoothly together even when jamming and improvising.
If you’ve always been keen on Buda Musique’s “Éthiopiques” series of contemporary Ethiopian jazz and other popular music from the 1950s on, and at present you’re starving for more of that music (because as far as I can tell, the last major release, being Volume 30, came out in 2017), this release will sate your hunger with its exuberant tunes and rhythms. Admittedly there’s not much here that sounds really original or which pushes the music into hitherto unknown or untried sonic territories – there’s no attempt here to incorporate music genres like hiphop or reggae or others relevant to young generations of Ethiopians – but Fendika & K-Sanchis demonstrate that there’s still plenty of vitality and energy in Ethiopian jazz no matter how old or young it is.
For me, the best tracks on the album are those that feature Nardos Tesfaw’s impassioned vocals but even some of the instrumental tracks encapsulate particular moods and emotions very strongly. Indeed, the danger may be that your own moods seesaw up and down depending on which songs you’re listening to! This album really does exercise a strong hypnotic effect in that respect.