Wednesday, February 2, 2011

No Minor Matter

In the melee of fiery selections for Carnival 2011 two tunes have struck this listener in a really nice place. Me Alone by the Black Spaniard, Bunch ah Garlic, De Girls Dem Darling…Bunji Garlin and the other a duet Feel to Wine, featuring Destra Garcia and Super Jigga T.C.

Both songs capture I believe, using minor chords, a warm, almost plaintive groove that is not only evident in the music but the lyrics of the songs.

Bunji’s draws melodic inspiration from Coldplay’s Viva la Vida and shares title with a little known selection by Jah Vinci from last year.

The song evokes the singularity but not loneliness, of its protagonist, who finds content throughout the Carnival despite being by them self, much like the character in Benjai’s Wine to the Side, who makes the best of her experience having been put out and not let in.

The duet it is a ‘sweetish’ sentiment expressed in a season when some say “why bring sand to the beach?” and maxims like after you exchange presents at Xmas you break up by New Years as Carnival is no time to be in a relationship still are heard if not adhered to. This is of course assuming that the “man” and “gyul” referred to is a steady and hopefully not one met during the two days of druken…oops…I mean wanton revelry which would be fine too especially if you don’t want to be alone. I mean if the wine goes well and well past Ash Wednesday then fine but otherwise a wine is a wine!

I might group them as Groovy but last years Murdah while groovy plays on a social reality that does not evoke the plaintive or the groovy. Too 2007’s Heart of a Man is fast paced yet civil, for want of a better word.

When showing off your stuff, chord change is no minor matter.

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