Strut Strut

Close View Full Product

Item added to your cart.

Checkout
Previous
Next
Close
Shaman!
ReleaseProduct
Shaman!
Artist
Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids
Label
Strut
Catalogue Number
STRUT214
Release Date
August 7, 2020

Influential jazz collective Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids return with an epic new opus, ‘Shaman!’, released on 7th August featuring a fresh line-up including original 1970s Pyramids member Dr. Margaux Simmons on flute, Bobby Cobb on guitar, long-term associate Sandra Poindexter on violin, Ruben Ramos on bass, Gioele Pagliaccia on drums and Jack Yglesias on percussion. The band transitions from the political and social commentaries of 2018’s acclaimed ‘An Angel Fell’ into more introspective themes. “I wanted to use this album to touch on some of the issues that we all face as individuals in the inner space of our souls and our conscience,” explains Ackamoor. “The album unfolds over four Acts with personal musical statements about love and loss, mortality, the afterlife, family and salvation.”

Evolving around Ackamoor’s intricate compositions, the album takes us effortlessly across moods and emotions through a series of expansive, extended pieces. Starting with ritual, soul-searching, and masculine vulnerability on the title track, the band explores timeless existence on ‘Eternity’ and mourns the sudden loss of loved ones in the prescient ‘When Will I See You Again?’, a track which gains new relevance amidst the current COVID-19 crisis. Ackamoor pays tribute to his mentor Cecil Taylor on the angular ‘Theme For Cecil’ and renders homage to the ancestors on ‘Salvation’ and ‘The Last Slave Ship’, recalling the last ship to bring slaves to the US from Africa, the Clotilda. The superb ‘Virgin’ is an anthem of forgiveness, new beginnings and self-healing.

‘Shaman!’ marks another significant landmark in The Pyramids’ discography with the band at the peak of their powers. It is produced by Malcolm Catto at his analogue HQ, Quatermass Studio, in London. Cover artwork features an exclusive new painting by Japanese artist Tokio Aoyama

Digital Track List

  1. 1 Shaman! 12:25 Buy

    Shaman!

  2. 2 Tango of Love 6:32 Buy

    Tango of Love

  3. 3 Eternity 9:36 Buy

    Eternity

  4. 4 When Will I See You Again? 7:54 Buy

    When Will I See You Again?

  5. 5 Salvation 10:27 Buy

    Salvation

  6. 6 Theme for Cecil 7:53 Buy

    Theme for Cecil

  7. 7 Virgin 10:21 Buy

    Virgin

  8. 8 The Last Slave Ship 5:06 Buy

    The Last Slave Ship

  9. 9 Dogon Mysteries 4:59 Buy

    Dogon Mysteries

Track List: CD/LP

ACT I: FIRE RITES OF PENANCE SHAMAN!
TANGO OF LOVE

ACT II: A GLIMPSE Of ETERNITY ETERNITY
WHEN WILL I SEE YOU AGAIN?

ACT III: UPON WHOSE SHOULDERS WE STAND SALVATION
THEME FOR CECIL

ACT IV: 400 YEARS: THE CLOTILDA VIRGIN
THE LAST SLAVE SHIP
DOGON MYSTERIES

Read More

Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids

Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids

Close
Previous Play Pause Next
features.playlist.label Close
Loading:
--:-- --:--

This site uses cookies. For information, please read our cookies policy.

Accept Cookies
Edit cookies preferences