Zion Roots
Anyone enthralled by the sprawlingEthiopiquesseries on Buda Musique may find a fascinating if unintentional addition to that series in Abyssinia  Infinite'sZion Roots. Whereas theEthiopiquesseries lovingly compiles  far-flung tracks recorded during the "golden age" of the Ethiopian record  industry in the early to mid-1970s,Zion Rootsis an illustration of the  astounding creativity and life still coursing through modern Ethiopian  music. Although Abyssinia Infinite boasts a cast of Ethiopian musicians  alongside producer Bill Laswell (heard here on acoustic guitar) and some of  his frequent collaborators like percussionists Karsh Kale and Aiyb Dieng  and accordionist Tony Cedras, this is essentially the second album by Gigi,  the Ethiopian singer with an overworldly voice whose self-titleddebutfeatured  her alongside such jazz heavyweights as Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter.  Fans of a more traditional Ethiopian or world-beat sound may be pleased to  discover that "Zion Roots" is a much more organic-sounding recording than  was that album or its Bill Laswell remix,Illuminated Audio. While there  are some modern production elements here that bear Laswell's stamp, like  backwards acoustic guitar effects and layered keyboards, for the most part  this is acoustic trance music that never loses its connection to the  traditional songs--in some cases hundreds of years old--Gigi sings here in  new arrangements. On tracks like "Gela," which features a mesmerizing kirar  (an ancient Ethiopian harp) pattern, the richly percussive "Gedawo" or the  entrancing hymn "Ethiopia" that closes the album, Gigi proves that  Ethiopian music has a bright future as well as a rich past.--Ezra Gale