Gold & Wax
(Palmbeat)
Fans of the thrilling 2002 debut by the Ethiopian singer have been waiting a long time for the follow-up, but they aren’t necessarily going to be pleased by everything they hear on Gold & Wax. The magnificently soulful voice is still in place and the punching horns evocatively conjure a funky night in a pre- revolutionary Addis Ababa nightclub. Yet the drum’n’bass beats provided by her American producer and husband, Bill Laswell, may be a little too relentlessly modern for some tastes. It’s a shame because the sinuously rhythmic and hypnotic Salam is probably the best thing she has done. Elsewhere, you just wish for less of Laswell. Gigi’s golden voice really doesn’t need him to be so intrusive.
NIGEL WILLIAMSON