Souvenirs
There are recordings that are specifically made to move you and then there are recordings that genuinely move you. The latest release on Mississippi Records is of the latter kind, a collection of self-recorded solo piano songs by the revered Ethiopian nun, composer and pianist Emahoy Tsege Mariam Gebru. Simply titled "Souvenirs," these cassette recordings had previously only been available on CD, as sold in the gift shop of the Kidane Mehret monastery in Jerusalem, where Emahoy lived in permanent exile until her passing in 2023. Now released posthumously on vinyl, in what would have been her 100th year, "Souvenirs" delivers an up-close-and-personal impression of this visionary, transcendental artist, who ended up making a name for herself and gaining somewhat of a niche, cult following, quite simply by making her own music on her own terms.
"In the 21st century, Emahoy has become known worldwide for her utterly unique melodic and rhythmic style. Commonly misinterpreted as 'jazzy' or 'honky tonk,' Emahoy's music actually comes from a deep engagement with the Western classical tradition, mixed with her background in Ethiopian traditional and Orthodox music," the release notes read. Created between 1977-1985, during a period when her native Ethiopia was in "political upheaval and turmoil, [...] these are songs of wisdom, loss, mourning, and exile, sung directly into a boombox and accompanied by Emahoy's unmistakable piano. Though written and recorded while still living at her family's home in Addis Ababa, Emahoy sings of the heartache of leaving her beloved Ethiopia, a reflection on the 1974 revolution and ensuing Red Terror in her homeland, and a presentiment of her future exile in Jerusalem."
Listening to "Souvenirs" is an otherworldly experience in all its subtlety. Soothing, heartfelt, unpretentious, meaningful and seemingly spontaneous in their delivery, there is an unparalleled honesty, intimacy and humanity in these home recordings that is bound to strike a chord with listeners from all walks of life. On this record, we are granted a private recital from the artist's family home that is incredibly touching, if you give it the room it deserves and appreciate it as coming from a place of truth. Each recording is a personal moment that we get to share with an intriguing individual, musical snapshots from a long time ago brought back to life for us to take joy in. There is a sense of eavesdropping that goes with these recordings as well as a slight tinge of guilt or remorse that it has taken us this long to hear her song. And yet, we can rest easy, knowing that Emahoy's musical legacy is in good hands.
More posts
Zaman Ziyan
Bridging continents from birth and styles since initially getting together in 2001, Istanbul-based outfit Ayyuka has been reimagining Turkish music – notably the infamous psychedelic era of the 1970s – on its own terms, and with quite some success. Juxtaposing their local roots and musical influences with global genres such as afrobeat, surf rock, funk and more, the four musicians have created an extensive discography by just doing their thing. We first [...]
Rekorder
Anticipation was high when we received the first notification for Berlin-based sound gymnast M.RUX's forthcoming longplayer, the follow-up to his 2020 concept album "Vermonische Melodien", which appeared on Pingipung. His latest eight-track feat just dropped on his very own YNFND imprint and is titled "REKORDER" – a nod to the miraculous process of recording sounds and the technology behind as well as the 150-year-long history of phonography or 'sound [...]
Tropikantele
Happy Kalevala Day everyone! Releasing today, on Finnish Culture Day, is this intriguing debut album by Finland's Sami Sammalkallio, who on this project goes by the stage name of Ruttusound. A singular project to say the least, this one absolutely blindsided us. A few weeks back, a colleague forwarded us a press info and download code via Finnish imprint Eclipse Music detailing this forthcoming release and we decided to give it a spin, not knowing what to [...]
Dens
Retracing our steps, we recently delved into the 2023 sophomore full-length by Belgrade-based project Lenhart Tapes. Released back in November on Glitterbeat Records, the hard-to-wrap-your-head-around aural patchwork of this multi-layered tour de force is nothing short of a revelation. Lenhart Tapes is a musical venture conducted by – excuse the platitude – mad scientist, tape lover and downright walkman virtuoso Vladimir Lenhart, who has been honing his [...]
The Room
One of a kind, is the sentiment that instantly runs trough our mind as we tune into the brand-new instrumental album by Brazilian guitarist Fabiano do Nascimento and American saxophonist Sam Gendel. And yes, besides the fact that American saxophonist Stan Getz and Brazilian guitarist João Gilberto had previously gathered worldwide acclaim for their 1964-released bossa nova connection, this modern-day pairing of two groundbreaking talents is nonetheless a [...]
La Voz de las Cumbres
Best file this under 'special interest' and yet, there is no doubt in our minds, that this latest release on the infamous Bongo Joe Records should appeal to a wide array of music aficionados. "La Voz de las Cumbres" ('the voice from the summits') by The San Lucas Band (of Guatemala) is the first-ever reissue of "cult 1974 recordings of a Mayan brass band playing funeral dirges and popular songs in its distinctive extended harmonic and rhythmic style." As hinted [...]
Wagadu Grooves
This here release is, quite unpretentiously, the stuff of legend, actually several legends wrapped into one phenomenal release. Paris-based reissue label Hot Mule has just compiled a heavy collection of productions by Gaye Camara, "one of the great independent music producers of his generation, and a pillar of the Parisian Soninke diaspora." If you are not familiar with the Soninke, they were the founders of the ancient empire of Ghana dating back to the 3rd [...]
Future Pasts
From Zurich, Switzerland, of all places comes a fresh batch of afroheat to help get us through the winter season – which is admittedly mild here in Berlin at the moment. We nonetheless acknowledge the intent of Barcelona/Lausanne-based Rocafort Records to keep us upbeat in these trying times. Enter the Konkolo Orchestra, a project initiated by multi-instrumentalist, producer and composer Alexis Malefakis [also co-founder and drummer of The Anthronauts and, if [...]
Sacred Love
Classic late night vibes, we thought to ourselves, when we first hit the link to the sophomore album of Sicillian DJ/producer Massimo Napoli, aka Galathea. Not sure if this shoe would fit, there was something about the viscous yet ethereal groove kneading our souls like putty that urged us to keep listening. And oh, how that paid off! "Sacred Love" – the follow-up to Galathea's self-titled, 2019-released debut full-length – is an irresistible groover that [...]
The Three Hands of Doom
One for the heads, would probably best describe this foolhardy rhythmic venture on Ugandan imprint Nyege Nyege Tapes, a label we most definitely respect for its dedication to "outsider music" yet one we haven't featured on Greedy quite simply because its releases are so hard to stomach and in most cases require a penchant for borderline masochistic listening tendencies. Let us be clear, we are not hating, just stating the obvious. And with that, we present you [...]
Mawimbi, Vol. 2
As we continue to ease into the new year – and following our latest feature on the "Maloca, Vol. 2" various artists compilation – there's another label compilation that we've been wanting to share with you: Celebrating 10 years of hyperactivity in the afro sounds circuit, the 2013-established Paris-based imprint and DJ/producer collective Mawimbi Records recently decided it was due time to release its second-ever label sampler, featuring a heavyweight, [...]
Maloca, Vol. 2
Oh, hey there! As we awake from our admittedly well-deserved holiday slumber, we decided to take another look back at 2023 and give Brussels-based electronic music imprint Maloca Records an honourable mention on our globally-minded platform. Established at the start of 2020 by versatile Belgian producer/film composer Le Motel "to capture the heady mix of global influences he distils into club-ready and contemporary forms" and "taking its name from the ancestral [...]