ETHIOPIA WEDET NESHE / Asnake Gebreyes

Asnake Gebreyes is a living bond between peoples, cultures and times. A hyphen between Addis Adeba and the rest of the world… If we deal with spiritual dimension, we perceive the transcendental dimension that ties up priest and artist. Ethiopian singers inherit a millennial tradition drawn on Christian orthodoxy, which lead them to extol to God and humans in a spirit of popular celebration. Laymen can dance with worshipers and the trance can be shared without any borders, thanks to these modern cantors.

Asnake Gebreyes masters his native country’s traditional singings and percussions as much as the sixties’ ethiojazz codes or the contemporary Ethiopian creation, which is nourished with fundamental influences from overseas. It is the sum of these reasons, enhanced by the charisma of this outstanding performer, which led him to get an international acknowledgement. He participated to the famous series “Ethiopics” of the Buda Musique label, under the direction of Francis Falceto, but also to The Ex’ world tour for their 25^th birthday… While becoming in 2010 the vocal and spiritual incarnation of Ukandanz’ Ethiopian crunch, a French project led by Damien Cluzel.

Thanks to this representative on Earth of the eternal groove from Ethiopia, with his elastic voice, the pop music meets the sacred for an express travel to the Horn of Africa. Everyone is invited! This tape’s re-released on vinyl format is a perfect symbol for the encounter between this popular tradition rooted in the heart of Africa and the Europeans’ aesthetic research for crossovers, who are more or less consciously captivated by the fusion between the sacred and the celebration, between esotericism and universalism.

© Amaury Rullière