Berlin-based multidisciplinary collective Sonic Interventions has released their debut LP ‘Do You Remember?, a futuristic improvisational jazz record exploring the seismic side effects of living in the diaspora during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Released under Agogo Records, ‘Do You Remember?’, at its core, asks questions about memory, identity, healing and the collective experience of the present moment, serving as a call to action and a reminder of the transformative power of art. Originally, the record’s seeds had been sowed during the summer of 2020 as a creative response to the chaotic state of the world at the time. It is compiled in reverse from a vast sound archive of self-recorded sessions spanning the past four years.
The compositions on the LP’s nine tracks are diverse as the collective members, drawing on a wide range of influences and inspirations from their multi-ethnic backgrounds, encompassing five continents. The record pivots from spiritual jazz to highlife, house and desert blues to African rhythms and hip-hop, capturing the raw gritty energy and the spontaneity and organic feel of Sonic Interventions’ ritualistic gatherings and live recorded sessions.
“We have called upon ourselves to investigate and challenge one another by means of reinvention,” the members of Sonic Interventions tell SceneNoise. “We want to ask questions that fuel our creations and existence, connecting us to the unknown, the forgotten, and the mystery, to which we might have no answers, but which lead us on a path of inquiry.”
The title track, ‘Dust’, starts off with an emotive progressively distorted poetry about the cosmic origins of humankind that later settles into an enticing Sahara-inspired groove, offering a reflection on the continuity of life even during such chaotic times in human history. Tracks like ‘Siyavuma (We Accept, We Surrender)’ and ‘Ma Qeti Pa Haru’ are built around meditations and recitations of ancient folk tales and prayers, while others emerge from collective improvisation and the desire to explore non-western rhythmic trance.
One of the standouts is ‘Twasa’, which was previously released as the album’s debut single. The track delves into the Southern African Xhosa folklore, referring to the tale of a dying skunk to explore themes of surrender and the process of healing. Meanwhile, tracks like ‘War’ and ‘Let Go’ touch on issues of prejudice and colonialism, with the former revolving around a shape-shifting matra on the war-ridden world, while the latter is a relentless deep house tune that flows forward with a grand choir-engine chanting ‘Freedom’.
