By Josef Woodard | Published September 2022
Impressive young South African saxophonist Linda Sikhakhane followed his heart and sense of artistic mission to New York City, studying at New School and soaking in New York jazz culture while maintaining a strong sense of rootedness in his heritage. That balancing act is evident on Sikhakhane’s potent third album, Isambulo. The title translates from the Zulu to “revelation,” fittingly for an album that effectively crosses borders and blurs cultural archetypes to create a brand of neo-Afro-jazz.
Sikhakhane conveys the focused power of his saxophone on the album but seems less concerned with showboating than in the integrity of the larger musical statement being made on the collection and by the collective. Hypnotic ostinatos, played by piano and bass, sometimes ground the exploratory tracks, as on the modal opener “Inner Freedom (Revisited)” and the slow-brew title track, fortified by the presence of trumpeter Matthias Spillman.
The teasingly brief “Umbhedesho” moves in a brisk free-bop direction.
Selective vocal parts fold into the fabric, without distracting from the overall focus, from Paras’ entrancing Zulu speak on “uNongoma” to Anna Widauer’s lyrical, dusky tone on a soul-jazz reflection on time and heart, “A Day Passed.” The album closes on the peaceable note of “Hymn For The Majors,” on which Sikhakhane taps into the legacy of Coltrane’s meditative modalities, imparting beauty and hope through his horn.
Isambulo: Inner Freedom (revisited); Gog’uIdah; Isambulo; uNongoma; Umbhedesho; A Day Passed; Ikhandlela; Hymn for The Majors. (38:57)
Personnel: Linda Sikhakhane, tenor and soprano saxophone; Lucca Fries, piano; Fabien Iannone, bass; Jonas Ruther, drums; El Hadji Ngari Ndong, percussion; Matthias Spillman, trumpet (3); Paras, vocal (4); Anna Widauer, Vocals (6).
Ordering Info: ropeadope.com
