Sunday 28 May 2023

Posted by Gerry Hectic | File under : , ,

Valia Calda have had a couple of singles out to promote the new album 'Homeland' but even then. it doesn't prepare you for the jazz-mix power house that they are.

You may recall Valia Calda's last single ‘The Stalker’ was (and still is) "heavy" on the psych-jazz out-there charts; the track is inspired by Andrei Tarkovshy's classic film).

And then there was a bit of a surprise of an instrumental trumpet led ballad, 'But In The End We'll Be Together'; this time inspired by the poetry of Odysseas Elytis (Ed. Who?) 

And from there, to the horn vs. psych guitar ENO/Fripp-ery jazz-dub of 'Crossing The Warm Valley' [my current favourite].

We're told the that the Greek influences are reflections on "timeless struggles of physical and ideological displacement" with "inspiration from the themes of migration and exile. Perhaps none more so than on 'Nostaglgia And Isolaton' and the title track, 'Homeland' (that's got a touch of Mulatu about it - which kinda sums up the displacement/migration concept musically - especially when it rocks out).

Valia Calda are led by London based guitarist Nikos Ziarkas (Theon Cross, Chelsea Carmichael, Moses Boyd) and double bassist Thodoris Ziarkas (Yazz Ahmed, Savina Yannatou, Electric Litany) and it's been picked up by the usual DJs from Jazz FM to BBC 6 Music (including Gilles Peterson) and many more.

It's a bit of a Jazz Chronicle's party this weekend and we'd have definitely played this out when we were DJing Acoustic Ladyland, The Comet Is Coming, Vula Viel, Suns Of Kemet and the like (and Sun Ra of course); yep, it's that good!


Artist: Valia Calda

Title: Homeland

Release date: 26th May, 2023

Label : Deep Mountain Records

Catalog Number : LP / CD / Digital / Bandcamp 




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