Alexander Hawkins and Louis Moholo-Moholo: Keep Your Heart Straight
Author: Marcus O'Dair
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Musicians: |
Louis Moholo-Moholo (d) |
Label: |
Ogun |
Magazine Review Date: |
April/2013 |
Catalogue Number: |
OGCD039 |
RecordDate: |
date not stated |
South Africa's Louis Moholo-Moholo came to London close to half a century ago and, together with his fellow exiles, went on to make an immeasurable contribution to British improvised music. In both years and miles, the 31-year old Alexander Hawkins comes from a very different place. But the Oxford-based musician is one of the UK's most versatile, as well as most talented keyboard players, capable of playing savagely deconstructed Hammond funk (with Decoy) or Éthiopiques grooves with Mulatu Astatké, while his own compositions fuse mathematical rigour with spontaneous joy.
This album runs the gamut from exploration to explosion, but the title is apt: standards and originals alike are heartfelt to the hilt. To say that there are echoes of other pianists with whom Moholo-Moholo has worked, including Cecil Taylor and the Blue Notes' Chris McGregor, may be flattering, but it also does Hawkins a disservice: he has a fully formed personality of his own. And paired with a still muscular, baseball-capped septuagenarian, he's unstoppable.
Jazzwise Full Club
- Latest print and digital issues
- Digital archive since 1997
- Download tracks from bonus compilation albums throughout the year
- Reviews Database access
From £9.08 / month
SubscribeJazzwise Digital Club
- Latest digital issues
- Digital archive since 1997
- Download tracks from bonus compilation albums during the year
- Reviews Database access