MAMY WATA-PROMESSE.

dereksmusicblog ♦ January 17, 2013 ♦ Leave a comment

MAMY WATA-PROMESSE.

Recently, when I was compiling my list of the twenty best new albums of 2012, Offering Recordings were one of the labels that came out on top. Sage Monk’s Heartache Allegory and Idrissa Sissoko’s Lopilopolo, both released by Offering Recordings, featured in my twenty best albums of 2012. Offering Recordings were founded by Boddhi Satva, whose debut album Invocation also featured in my list of best new albums of 2012. Ever since Boddhi Satva founded Offering Recordings, the label has established a reputation as one of the most innovative independent labels. It appears Offering Recordings look harder, and further afield than other labels. Just one listen to their sampler, Offering Recordings Ade 2012 demonstrates this. Ade Alafia Adio, Idrissa Sissoko, Sons of Arhat, Delany Duval and Paul Randolph all featured on Offering Recordings Ade 2012. So did Mamy Wata, whose debut album Promesse will soon be released. Before I tell you about Mamy Wata, whose debut album Promesse, I’ll tell you about his career so far.

Born in the Central African Republic as Dea Nam Gann, Mamy Wata as she’s now known, has been compared to the legendary jazz singer Nina Simone. Now comparisons are often drawn with new artists, but in Mama Wata’s case, this is no exaggeration. Here is an artist who has gradually built up a reputation as one of the most charismatic and talented singers of her generation. While many people might not have heard of Mamy Wata, that will soon change.

Mamy Wata has established a reputation as one of the most charismatic singers you’ll have the fortune to hear. Fusing soul, jazz and blues, Mamy Wata’s voice spans several octaves. From the moment she walks onto a stage, Mamy Wata has you spellbound. What follows is an enchanting evening’s entertainment. With just guitar and percussion accompanying her, Mamy’s performance captivates and enchants. Described as “singing with her body and dancing with her voice,” Mamy Wata is no ordinary singer.

Indeed, Mamy Wata has attained legendary status. All this without the backing of a major record label. Forsaking the hype, bluster and hustle that comes with a major record label behind you, Mamy has done things differently. Instead, Mamy Wata has become something of a mystical figure. Her reputation has spread by word of mouth. This comes through playing festival after festival, winning audiences far and wide over with her compelling fusion of musical genres. Signing a recording contract was only a case of when, rather than if. This is where Boddhi Satva’s Offering Recordings came in.

The first many people heard of Mamy Wata was when they heard Offering Recordings Ade 2012. This was a sampler of the artists on Offering Recordings’ rapidly expanding roster. During 2012, Offering Recordings established a reputation as one of the most innovative labels. They’re at the forefront of what’s referred to as either Nu-Soul, Future Soul or what’s become known as Ancestral Soul. Their latest release is Mamy Wata debut album Promesse.

For Mamy Wata’s debut album Promesse, Mamy wrote and performed each of the nine songs. Accompanying Mamy are David Clavel on guitar, n’goni and backing vocals, bassist Elvin Bironien, violist Sabrina Mauchet and Phillippe Cordelier on djembe, percussion and backing vocals. Offering Recordings founder Boddhi Satva, was the executive producer of Mamy Wata’s debut album Promesse, which I’ll now tell you about.

Opening Mamy Wata’s debut album Promesse, is Miroir. From the opening bars, when just a guitar, percussion and bass combine, you’re spellbound, mesmerised. Then when Mamy’s vocal enters, things move up a gear. She deliver her vocal with real emotion. It’s deeply moving, with a real spiritual quality. The moody, almost haunting understated arrangement suits the song. Her vocal is a combination of passion, power and emotion, especially when she scats jazz style. Sometimes, Mamy’s vocal takes on an ethereal, crystalline sound. Later, Mamy unleashes a vocal that’s not unlike an outpouring of sheer emotion. After this, it’s as if Mamy is spent, exhausted, having given so much of herself during this seven-minute epic.

Papa is very different from the opening track. Just an acoustic guitar accompanies Mamy’s tender, hurt-filled vocal. She tackles the problem of abuse. Her vocal is breathy, sometimes a whisper. It’s as if she’s been worn down by the anguish, suffering and hurt, a mere shadow of her former self. Always, her vocal is filled with sadness and distrust. This is reflected by the melancholy violins. They reflect the hurt and heartache in her voice, as empathy and sympathy are ever-present.

Cesse de Pleurer has a dramatic opening. Mamy’s deliberate vocal is accompanied  by equally deliberate bursts of pensive guitar. Space is left in the arrangement, before it’s all change. With guitar and bass accompanying her, the arrangement becomes choppy and almost dramatic. Harmonies accompany her, their tender reply a contrast to Mamy’s confident vocal. By now, it has grown in power. Later, the arrangement becomes much more subtle, before growing in power, drama and emotion. Spurred on, Mamy delivers one of her most fervent, heartfelt vocals on Promesse.

Adoption has a wistful, jazz-tinged sound. Just acoustic guitar and percussion accompany Mamy’s vocal. She delivers an impassioned vocal, her delivery a mixture of jazz and soul in styling. Throughout the song, there’s a warmth and fervor to her vocal. Sometimes, her vocal sounds wistful and melancholy. Despite this, you realize each word is delivered with feeling, sincerity and emotion. The subtle backdrop is perfect for the song. It allows Mamy’s vocal to take centre-stage, which is quite fitting. Quite simply, that’s where it belongs.

Straight away, you realize something special is unfolding as La Peine reveals its beauty and secrets. Mamy’s vocal is a mixture of power and confidence, but also frustration and anger. The song is about the abolition of the death penalty. With just percussion and guitar accompanying her, the arrangement grows in power, becoming frenzied as the frustration and anger in Mamy’s voice grows.

When Regardez Moi opens, Mamy’s vocal is pensive and thoughtful. Soon, it grows in power and passion. It’s as if this song is deeply personal. Just an acoustic guitar and percussion accompany her as she deals with the subject of mental illness. Her vocal is filled with emotion, as she sings of the anguish, confusion and pain sufferers experience. She uses her voice like an instrument. It soars filled with anxiety, pain and confusion. It’s powerful, potent and moving, sounding like a cathartic outpouring of anxiety, emotion and confusion.

Like other songs on Promesse, Mamy tackles another social issue during Dans La Rue, poverty. Just like other tracks, this prompts another powerful, moving outpouring of frustration, anger and emotion. This is Mamy at her very best. Quite simply, it’s impossible not to be moved by her vocal. It grows in power, her voice filled with emotion and pain. It’s as if she shares what people are experiencing. Other times, her vocal wells up, angered, frustrated and disapproval at the injustice and inequality that she’s seen and experienced. Of all the songs on Promesse, this is the most powerful and moving.

The tempo slows, space is left in the arrangement as J’ai Peur unfolds. Mamy’s vocal is deep, powerful and heartfelt. Filled with emotion and with guitars, percussion and backing vocalists accompanying her, you’re spellbound. You can’t help but be won over by Mamy’s impassioned delivery,What follows is a mesmerizing four minute song. Mamy seems to have dug deep, surpassing everything that’s come before, delivering quite simply, her best vocal on Promesse.

Closing Mamy Wata’s debut album Promesse is Dis Moi. Just chiming, crystalline guitars and percussion accompany the tenderest of harmonies. Then confidently and powerfully Mamy’s vocal enters. Like Mamy’s vocal, the guitar is played more stridently. A contrast are the harmonies, which are tender, ethereal and beautiful. It’s as if Mamy and her band are determined to raise their game one more time. This they do, closing Promesse on a deeply moving, emotive high.

Having heard Mamy Wata’s Regardez Moi on Offering Recordings Ade 2012, the release of Mamy’s debut album couldn’t come quick enough. I certainly wasn’t disappointed with Promesse. From the opening bars of Miroir, right through to the closing notes of Dis Moi Promesse it’s a deeply moving, emotive and powerful musical journey. A wide range of social issues are explored, from poverty, the death penalty, mental illness, identity and abuse. This is a brave exploration of some complex social issues. Many artists wouldn’t be brave enough to do so. Instead, they’d play safe and stick with much more familiar themes. So, it’s to Mamy Waty’s credit that she’s explored each of these issues. Mamy Waty tackles each issue head-on, her voice breathing life, meaning and emotion into the nine tracks on Promesse. The result is one of the best albums Offering Recordings have released.

Indeed, Mamy Wata’s debut album Promesse which will be soon be released on Offering Recordings, is one of the finest Ancestral Soul albums that’s been released. I’m sure Mamy Wata has a great future ahead of her, and that we’ll be hearing much more from you, that I can Promesse. Standout Tracks: Miroir, Adoption, Regardez Moi and Dans La Rue.

MAMY WATA-PROMESSE.