Super Group Souljazz Orchestra Drops New CD, “Solidarity” on Sept. 18th, 2012

Souljazz Orchestra Return With ‘Solidarity’
Featured Guests Join To Explore Caribbean, Latin & African Influences
Souljazz Orchestra – Solidarity
(September 18th)

http://www.strut-records.com • www.souljazzorchestra.com

Canada’s hardest working super-group, The Souljazz Orchestra, return at full throttle this September with Solidarity, a new collaborative album featuring a range of unique artists from their country’s vibrant underground groove scene. Rooted in rhythmically rich musical traditions of the past, the collective have kept their eyes on the future, pushing the boundaries of soul, jazz and tropical styles with a set of heavyweight new songs, unified by a powerful message of positive social change.

After the success of their last record, the all-acoustic, instrumental outing, Rising Sun, the Orchestra returns to electric, vocal-driven compositions on Solidarity, inviting in a selection of singers with whom they have collaborated at different times over the last decade. Hailing from diverse musical backgrounds, the guests were the catalyst for memorable artistic exchange, allowing each party to feed off the other and venture beyond their usual realm of experience into fresh musical territory.

The album’s cast includes singer, percussionist and songwriter El Hadji “Élage” M’baye, originally from Saint-Louis off the coast of Sénégal, now resident in Gatineau, Québec, a descendant of a long line of griot minstrels, acknowledged for his fusions of traditional Wolof sounds with modern popular music; singer, songwriter and guitarist Rômmel Teixeira Ribeiro, hailing from São Luís in North-Eastern Brazil, now living in downtown Ottawa, recognised for his unusual mix of native Brazilian styles with North American, West African and Caribbean influences; vocalist and songwriter Slim Moore, born in Overbrook, Ontario to Jamaican parents, better known for his soul-oriented work with the Mar-Kays but exploring here reggae-tinged original Patois material; brilliant jazz trumpeter Nicholas Dyson; versatile singer Amelia Leclair on backing vocals; and the full Souljazz Orchestra core complete the line-up, with vocal contributions by drummer / conguero Philippe Lafrenière and baritone saxophonist Ray Murray.

The compositions that arose from the sessions are in a variety of Afro, Latin and Caribbean styles, all connected by a consistent thread of North American soul and jazz sensibilities. Featuring lyrics sung in English, Spanish, Portuguese and Wolof (with borrowings from French and Arabic), the songs touch on subjects ranging from social and political issues to relationships and traditional folk tales.

The plugged-in direction of the new album also provided the band with an excuse to dig out some of their dusty, forgotten electric instruments from the attic: an ancient vibrato-heavy transistor organ, pawn shop hollow-body electric guitars, a warbling psychedelic tape-echo machine, a cavernous surf-guitar spring reverb unit, even an old Italian-made Elka electric piano rescued from a garbage can. The album was recorded onto a temperamental Tascam 8-track tape machine inherited from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police at a surplus sale. The resultant sound is gritty, low-budget and analogue and the musicianship is, as always, vice-tight.

Now celebrating their 10th year, The Souljazz Orchestra continue their unrivalled run of fine albums. Breaking through on Toronto label Do Right!, Freedom No Go Die (2006, featuring their huge single “Mista President”) and Manifesto (2008) set the bar high. 2010’s Rising Sun, their first for Strut, was recognised as a landmark in deep, spiritual Afro jazz. Meanwhile, as a live unit, the Orchestra have become an in-demand fixture at venues and festivals worldwide and successfully toured the US for the first time during 2012.

The Souljazz Orchestra will be touring from September 2012, including extensive dates across Europe and a follow-up tour of Canada and the US. Booking agents: Jules de Lattre at The Agency in London (Europe) and Dave Poe at The Agency in Los Angeles (USA).

1. BIBINAY
2. KELEN ATI LEEN
3. CARTAO POSTAL
4. YA BASTA
5. JERICHO
6. SERVE & PROTECT
7. CONQUERING LION
8. KINGPIN
9. TANBOU LOU
10. NIJAAY

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http://www.strut-records.com