MATANA ROBERTS Vinyl & CDs

Review: Sound artist, sax player and composer Matana Roberts continues to explore her family history and African American heritage through experimental music and storytelling, on the fifth instalment of the acclaimed Coin Coin series. As with her prior works, the album is a sonic collage of personal archival recordings, spoken word, and free instrumental improvisations, all adding up to, and erring towards, a truly liberated sonic recollection of her own past. Throughout, snippets of recorded dialogue murmur away in the low background, as a compelling quietude of noir jazz vignettes whirl around in the hazy forefront, exploring the central theme of a particularly traumatic event in her family line.