Chaka V. Grier
Jessica Moss. Phosphenes. Phosphenes is composer-violinist Jessica Moss’s first release since Entanglement in 2018. Defined as the experience of seeing light and shapes while the eye is closed, Phosphenes is an apt title for an album made as the pandemic’s bleakness is starting to allow cracks of light[...] Read more
Silla and Rise. Silarjuaq. In 2017, the trio Silla and Rise released a self-titled debut that merged Inuit throat-singing duo Silla (Charlotte Qamaniq and Cynthia Pitsiulak) and the electronic beats of DJ Rise Ashen. They sounded like nobody else. In 2019, Galactic Gala proved that the innovative trio was crafting an[...] Read more
Dominique Fils-Aimé. Three Little Words. In 2018 Montreal-based jazz artist Dominique Fils-Aimé released the first album of a trilogy exploring the shifting genres and experiences of African-American history and culture. The blues-inspired Nameless explored African sounds that morphed into the blues during enslavement. The[...] Read more
OKAN. Espiral. Since forming the Toronto-based Afro-Cuban jazz duo OKAN in 2017, Magdelys Savigne and Elizabeth Rodriguez have been trumpeting their island’s eclectic sounds free of a Western filter or figure, steadily becoming stars of Canada’s growing global sound. On the heels of their EP [...] Read more
Witch Prophet. DNA Activation. Witch Prophet is a fitting name for Ayo Leilani, whose enchanting, bold, and malleable vocals, hypnotic rhythms, and profound lyrical wisdom conjure powerful stories. Her latest release, DNA Activation, both lives up to and expands on the achievement of her stunning 2018 solo debut, The Golden[...] Read more
Pursuit Grooves. Bess. For some, the name Bessie Coleman will not ring a bell. She was the first African American–Indigenous female to receive an international pilots’ licence in 1921. Famous in her time, Coleman died at age thirty-four, nearly 100 years ago. Although her life is rarely discussed today[...] Read more
Petra Glynt. My Flag Is A Burning Rag of Love. Petra Glynt is a sonic swashbuckler. Her electronic art-punk music reveals an unapologetic originator whose politics are integral to everything she produces (including her subversive. rainbow-coloured artwork). Her self-produced sophomore release, My Flag Is a Burning Rag of Love, which was[...] Read more