By Robert Ham | Published July 2021
Despite the snowy backdrop seen on the cover, Dance, the latest album by guitarist Leni Stern, floats by like a warm breeze. The compositions by Stern and her regular cohort of percussionist Alioune Faye, bassist Mamadou Ba and keyboardist Leo Genovese are light and sparse, filled with pockets of silence that give each melodic line and rhythm room to breathe and blossom.
Because of that buoyancy and openness, Dance becomes an ideal listening experience. It sits comfortably in the background of life, lending color and calm to the day. But a close listen reveals the many details and the various shades that each player applies to this musical canvas.
That’s where the work of bassist Mamadou Ba really comes to the fore. A self-taught player from Senegal, he is the bounding heart of this album, setting the steady pace of Genovese’s “Kani–Hot Pepper” and playing well off the array of synth tones and Stern’s chiming guitar on his own “Maba.” And having settled comfortably into the fold after joining Stern’s band last year, Genovese takes the album title to heart as he spins and twirls through each song with a balletic flair. Just listen for his loose, responsive solo on “Daouda Sane” as it continues to tease the main melody before skipping away again.
Stern is something of a diaphanous presence on an album that carries her name, at least on guitar and n’goni. She steps forward here and there for a striking solo, but puts greater emphasis on her singing, a pleasant sound to be sure. Stern’s guitar work usually makes such a strong statement. As delightful as Dance is, the album could use some occasional injections of that kind of intensity.
Dance: Ya Rakhman–Prayer; Aljourna–Friday; Maba; Kani–Hot Pepper; Khale–Children; Kono–Bird; Daouda Sane; Fonio–Grain. (41:46)
Personnel: Leni Stern, guitar, n’goni; Leo Genovese, keyboards; Mamadou Ba, bass; Alioune Faye, percussion; Haruna Samake, camela n’goni.
Ordering Info: lenistern.com
