Gaume Jazz Festival : [Na]

Jazz-punk inspired by the Chicago Jazz School, with its libertarian and solidarity-based leanings

Rémi Psaume, saxophones / Raphaël Szöllösy, guitar / Selma Doyen, drums

One girl, two guys. The first bangs on drums, the other two play sax and guitar. And effects pedals, too, to great effect. While the influences are obvious (The Ex, Getatchew Mekuria, Dead Kennedys), the trio truly doesn't lack personality. Explosive and massive results – worth listening to and experiencing live!

The Project

[Na]: chemical element of enthusiastic disobedience. It can be found in Monk's punctuated piano strokes or the Afro-Dutch distortions of The Ex and Getatchew Mekurya. The Chicago School, with its libertarian and solidarity-based leanings, from the Art Ensemble to Jaimie Branch, has written numerous treatises on this subject. The new trio Selma Namata Doyen (drums), Rémi Psaume (alto and baritone saxophones, effects) and Raphaël Szöllösy (baritone guitar) experiments with these concepts by drawing on formulas haunted by Mandingo lyricism as much as by electric drones. Their first EP, recorded in a legendary barn in Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines, was released in May 2023.

Originally formed for a tribute concert to the album Moa Anbessa (Getatchew Mekurya, The Ex & Guests, Terp Records, 2006), the band drew from this project several pieces that infuse their repertoire, guided by the fundamental principles of their music: the uniqueness of the Ethiopian master's breath, the rhythmic power of the iconic Dutch post-punk indie ensemble, and the internationalism of musical forms, all geographies and histories being respected equally.

[Na]'s compositions are conceived with respect for such a heritage. They fervently express the poetry of labor, the unwavering perseverance of human beings in the face of the harshness of the world, and the magical power of unwavering friendship. Each concert by the trio is a celebration of collective freedoms, where styles, riffs, and percussive formulas are all reconfigurable elements intended to convey to the assembled audience the energy of the transformation of the passing days.

With the support of AJC & Jazz Migration