Originally published in JazzRightNow, August 2021
Afro Yaqui Music Collective, Maroon Futures (Neuma, 2021)
- Nonantzin
(Salvador Morena)
- Sister Soul
(Barson, Nefertiti, O’Neill)
- La Cigarra (Perez
Soto)
- Ya Habib
(Nefertiti, Bason, Rossman)
- We refuse to
be Used and Abused (Ho, Barson, Nefertiti)
- Insurrealista
(Barson, Nefertiti)
Within the pantheon of new music, that which
was birthed through jazz in particular, the political content has been brazenly,
pridefully Left. Sounds of protest easily predate the artform as we know it,
indeed slave poetry, field hollers and the roots of the blues were foremost the
folk art of liberation, but as jazz came to be, the struggle for expression itself
was profound to a population enchained. To those paying attention, the question
of why a certain artist within this music is “so political” is itself a
misnomer. By nature, jazz, especially in its more radical form, is a political
statement. Taking this concept into the post-modern, works both through-composed
and freely improvised, orchestrated or formed by conduction, and with the addition
of international cultures and revolutionary poetry, the struggle of a people becomes
the struggle of a cause. Social justice in many hues, many voices.
The Afro Yaqui Music Collective, the self-described “post-colonial
big band”, is the embodiment of this expanded struggle even while thriving on
the aesthetics of an advanced music. Guided by Ben Barson Ph.D., a protege of
the late Fred Ho, this 15-piece ensemble wears its multi-cultural,
multi-lingual coat of arms with pride and intent. The band’s socio-politics shines
as much as its inherent swing, groove and the captivating orchestrations of its
leader. Maroon Futures, the Collective’s sophomore release, is dedicated
to the cause of Russell Maroon Shoatz, political prisoner of the Pennsylvania system
for some fifty years, thirty of which he bore within solitary confinement. Barson
was at the heart of one of Ho’s final works, a suite which raised funds and
awareness for the cause of Shoatz. That work was directed in performance by
another radical stalwart, Salim Washington due to the state of Ho’s illness at
the time, still, Barson has advanced the cause to a new level. The Afro Yaqui Music
Collective seems to have picked up where Charlie Haden’s grand Liberation Music
Orchestra left off, though comprised of lesser-known artists. No small feat.
The album’s liner notes speak of the effects of 2020’s
pandemic as well as its uprisings: the people’s fight against (as Shoatz dubbed
it) “patriarchal capitalism” as realized in racist policing, rampant sexism and
the commodification of natural resources. Most profound is the call for a revolutionary
matriarchy to effect necessary change. Appropriately, the album opens with “Nonantzin”,
for Mother Earth, which marries jazz-funk to the ancient language of Nahuatl,
itself an example of a pre-Columbian, maternalistic society. Composed by
Salvador Moreno, the melody is carried by the flowing vocal by Gizelxanath
Rodriguez, a principal of the Collective whose own origin is Mexican. Barson’s
low horn covets the bottom as handily as Rodriguez’s voice soars above the supple
arrangement. The multiculturalism expands further with the use of stop-time to
herald in solo statements, particularly when drummer Julian Powell’s backbeat,
in the absence of other instruments, recalls that very traditional and stark
blues stomp. But this cut is where the one-world sound only begins. “Sister
Soul”’s Chinese pipa lead (by Yang Jin) is initially retained beneath the
gorgeous vocal by Charlotte O’Neal, and then onto the
hip hop spoken word of Nejma Nefertiti and O’Neal. The call for that
revolutionary matriarchy couldn’t be clearer, but bassist Beni Rossman’s sinewy
R&B chops are also standout here.
The global unity takes flight on “La Cigarra” by
composer Raymundo Perez y Soto, a roving work which floats between 6/8 and 7/8
meters, calling on memories of apropos Spanish Civil War songs and the vast Middle
Eastern musical tradition. Daro Behroozi’s moving solos on both tenor saxophone
and ney flute walk between these worlds, traditions old and of-the-moment, as
the lyric symbolizes the underground existence of political prisoners.
However, the central work of Maroon Futures is
one by Fred Ho, brought to new life under the hand of Barson and company. “We
Refuse to Be Used and Abused”, also known as “Unity (for the Struggle of
Workers”), the strength of this message is as apparent in the Collective’s realization
as in Ho’s revolutionary intent. Listen for the story as told within solo
statements by electric guitarist John Bagnato, alto saxophonist Alec Zander
Redd, and Barson. But the work rolls out with deliberation and utmost urgency through
an alluringly Ellingtonian saxophone section theme. It seems too easy to state that the band is on
fire here, but this critic can find no better description. The thematic
material shimmers in that 1930s Harlem manner but then turns heavy on the
pocket groove as Nefertiti’s empowering rap lyric is accompanied by the band’s
shouts. Classic big band swing with hip hop interplay in the post-colonial global
village. Listen once to eat up the vital statements, but then listen again to
focus on the solos, particularly that of Bagnato who simply shreds the
atmosphere. The Afro Yaqui Music Collective is not your father’s (or grandfather’s)
big band; it is the one we’ve been waiting for. But if they should take on the Savoy
Ballroom, the resonance will be historic.
