Michael Wimberly: Afrofuturism

Technically titled TMR (Temple Mountain Records)Presents  Afrocentrism by Michael Wimberly, this album has the keyboardist leader exploring various aspects of black American music ranging from vintage soul to West African roots. There is a large collection of vocalists along with musicians Kofi Osei Williams/djembe, Jonathan Joseph/dr, Waldron Ricks/tp, Armando Gola-Trevor Allen/b, Bruce Williams/wwinds, Goday Musa Suso/kora and Sharief Hobley/g. Some nice soul grooves are provided by the leader and Hobley on the dreamy “Alive” and the 70s sound of “Mack Daddy’s Woman” with some upbeat backbeat on “Revolution”. Exotic sounds from the Sahel have rich kora strings along with vocalist Joss Stone on the pretty “Dance with You” and Theresa Thomason on the rich “Madiaba” while “Djeli Song” mixes traditional Malian vocals by kora player Suso. A mix of folk and funk takes place on the percussive “DDK Groove” and a pair of versions of “Solei” show how a modern bass line can turn a traditional sound to an up to date pulse. Various hues of black sounds.

www.michaelwimberly.bandcamp.com

www.michaelcwimberly.com

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