I Too am a Stranger

The Sorcerers are not exactly prolific – this is their third album in nine years – but they are a great band from Leeds, influenced by the classic Ethio-jazz styles of the 60s and 70s. And they have succeeded so well that one of their heroes, the great Mulatu Astatke, championed them on his Addis radio show. The Éthiopiques albums encouraged a spate of bands to make use of Ethiopia’s distinctive scales and styles, but The Sorcerers have created a style of their own. Unlike Dub Colossus, one of my favourite Ethiopian-inspired bands, they don’t mix reggae or dub with African styles (though there is a reggae edge to the cool, funky ‘Oromo Moon’), but create soundscapes that would make fine atmospheric film music. Which is perhaps not surprising, as they cite European horror films as an influence. The tracks are instrumental, and based around insistent, slinky or exuberant percussion riffs over which Richard Ormrod (flute, vibes, keys) and Olivia Cuthill on trumpet add Ethio-melodies. From the opening exuberant ‘He Who Kills with One Leap’ to the flute work-out on ‘Bebaynetu’ or the final, alto-dominated ‘She Who Perceives the Sounds of the World’, this is a classy set.