FPE US Vinyl & CDs

Review: Black is the first record from saxophone player D.A. Mekonnen under the Dragonchild alias. He is someone who is always thinking in cosmic terms and this sonic exploration draws on that with inspiration taken from Black visionaries Haile Gerima, an Ethiopian filmmaker, nonconformist American artist Lonnie Holley, and American activist and author Adrienne Maree Brown. All four of the one-sided albums are designed to be played simultaneously and are made in tribute to the great Alice Coltrane whose influence looms large. It is a ferocious and meditative album unlike any other you will hear this year.