Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival 2023 IBIBIO Sound Machine
Queen's Hall 20th July Review
Queen's Hall 20th July Review
Ibibio Sound Machine were at the Queen’s Hall Edinburgh tonight performing a show that was a part of the Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival 2023 and, for me, this set was one of the festival highlights so far.
Fronted by London-born Nigerian singer Eno Williams, Ibibio Sound Machine is a celebratory fusion of two cultures fusing together as African sounds and rhythms meet disco and modern electro beats. Although the band have a large following for their contemporary dance floor sounds, they also celebrate the traditional musical and rhythmic heritage of the Ibibio people of Southern Nigeria and Eno Williams’ mother’s native tongue was Ibibio.
Currently Ibibio Sound Machine is Eno Williams (vocals), Alfred Kari Bannerman (guitar), Anselmo Netto (percussion), Jose Joyette (drums), Derrick McIntyre (bass), Tony Hayden (trombone, synth), Scott Baylis (trumpet, synth), and Max Grunhard (saxophone, synth) and together they have created their own very distinctive sound and visual identity. Ibibio Sound Machine is musically one very tight band who make everything seem like it is spontaneous on-stage, and that is not an easy trick to get right.
The visual and musical focal point of this band is Eno Williams and this lady obviously understands that performance skills are as important as the music on-stage and every song is a distinctive display of how to entertain an audience in its own right. Eno Williams is a rare combination of impressive vocal talent and stage entertainer who knows exactly how to capture an audience from the moment she walks onto stage and hold it in the palm of her hand for the whole show. Very importantly, this was a standing show in the main area of the venue (the Queen’s Hall is a former church so there was also seating) and Ibibio Sound Machine clearly have a much younger audience than often goes to shows at a Jazz Festival and this is so badly needed for so many different reasons.
Ibibio Sound Machine released their current album “Electricity” in March 2022, so it was no surprise that this set included some songs from that album, including “Electricity”, “Protection From Evil”, “All That You Want” and “Wanna See Your Face Again”. All the newer material plus earlier songs such as “I Need You to Be Sweet Like Sugar” and “Give Me A Reason” were obvious crowd pleasers and dance floor fillers, but often, beneath the upbeat party music, there is a more serious voice to the music of Ibibio Sound Machine and “Give Me A Reason” is one such song.
At the end of the day though this band knows exactly what their audiences want to hear from them and give them that sound and a stage performance full of colour and vitality to match the music.
Opening this set tonight was Mother All Mighty, an ambitious 7 piece band (although expanded somewhat in numbers this evening) who perform original songs and soulful cover that at times remind me a little bit of that large scale sound that classic bands like Earth Wind and Fire and The Emotions could create. As always, Konrad Wiszniewski (an addition to the line-up for this show) never fails to be a crowd pleaser with his very distinctive sound on saxophone. Obviously this year (as in earlier years) Konrad is one very busy performer at this year’s festival as he crosses so effortlessly between Jazz, soul and funk music genres.
The band is fronted by Edinburgh singer/songwriter/performer Naledi Herman and there were some interesting self-penned songs here in this set including “Sarah”, a name given to Naledi’s own little inner voice that can be telling her positive or negative things so often. I am sure that so many of us have our own inner voice that really needs a name too.
This was the first time that Mother All Mighty had played at the Queen’s Hall and this was obviously a big moment for the band too. Getting to open this show for Ibibio Sound Machine was a huge opportunity that I am sure this band will make the most of in the coming months.
Review by Tom King © 2023
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com
Fronted by London-born Nigerian singer Eno Williams, Ibibio Sound Machine is a celebratory fusion of two cultures fusing together as African sounds and rhythms meet disco and modern electro beats. Although the band have a large following for their contemporary dance floor sounds, they also celebrate the traditional musical and rhythmic heritage of the Ibibio people of Southern Nigeria and Eno Williams’ mother’s native tongue was Ibibio.
Currently Ibibio Sound Machine is Eno Williams (vocals), Alfred Kari Bannerman (guitar), Anselmo Netto (percussion), Jose Joyette (drums), Derrick McIntyre (bass), Tony Hayden (trombone, synth), Scott Baylis (trumpet, synth), and Max Grunhard (saxophone, synth) and together they have created their own very distinctive sound and visual identity. Ibibio Sound Machine is musically one very tight band who make everything seem like it is spontaneous on-stage, and that is not an easy trick to get right.
The visual and musical focal point of this band is Eno Williams and this lady obviously understands that performance skills are as important as the music on-stage and every song is a distinctive display of how to entertain an audience in its own right. Eno Williams is a rare combination of impressive vocal talent and stage entertainer who knows exactly how to capture an audience from the moment she walks onto stage and hold it in the palm of her hand for the whole show. Very importantly, this was a standing show in the main area of the venue (the Queen’s Hall is a former church so there was also seating) and Ibibio Sound Machine clearly have a much younger audience than often goes to shows at a Jazz Festival and this is so badly needed for so many different reasons.
Ibibio Sound Machine released their current album “Electricity” in March 2022, so it was no surprise that this set included some songs from that album, including “Electricity”, “Protection From Evil”, “All That You Want” and “Wanna See Your Face Again”. All the newer material plus earlier songs such as “I Need You to Be Sweet Like Sugar” and “Give Me A Reason” were obvious crowd pleasers and dance floor fillers, but often, beneath the upbeat party music, there is a more serious voice to the music of Ibibio Sound Machine and “Give Me A Reason” is one such song.
At the end of the day though this band knows exactly what their audiences want to hear from them and give them that sound and a stage performance full of colour and vitality to match the music.
Opening this set tonight was Mother All Mighty, an ambitious 7 piece band (although expanded somewhat in numbers this evening) who perform original songs and soulful cover that at times remind me a little bit of that large scale sound that classic bands like Earth Wind and Fire and The Emotions could create. As always, Konrad Wiszniewski (an addition to the line-up for this show) never fails to be a crowd pleaser with his very distinctive sound on saxophone. Obviously this year (as in earlier years) Konrad is one very busy performer at this year’s festival as he crosses so effortlessly between Jazz, soul and funk music genres.
The band is fronted by Edinburgh singer/songwriter/performer Naledi Herman and there were some interesting self-penned songs here in this set including “Sarah”, a name given to Naledi’s own little inner voice that can be telling her positive or negative things so often. I am sure that so many of us have our own inner voice that really needs a name too.
This was the first time that Mother All Mighty had played at the Queen’s Hall and this was obviously a big moment for the band too. Getting to open this show for Ibibio Sound Machine was a huge opportunity that I am sure this band will make the most of in the coming months.
Review by Tom King © 2023
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com
Please note that unless requested by performers/pr/venues that this website no longer uses the "star rating" system on reviews.