The Italian-Belgian-Dutch-German quintet ALIGAGA was born in 2014 «within the womb of mother art where communication, tribal friendship, respect, emotions and integration». The musicians of this band once shared a flat in Maastricht and met after music class to jam and create inspiring new music. Music Might Help is a double album and already the fifth one of this band and is structured like a musical puzzle. It blooms into a cinematographic arborescence sparkling with spontaneity, voices, pulsing energies, mystery, colors and creativity.
ALIGAGA tells an engaging and colorful, energetic and sometimes even psychedelic or magic realism story – written by tenor sax player Joos Vandueren with music by double bass player Federco Corsini, who also did the artwork – about #a clown called Seyya. She was distant but had a warm heart. Her father, Koko, was also a clown. Her mother had left the circus not long after Seyya was born, Why? a conundrum, the only knowledge she had of her mother’s existence is that she became the owner of a world record; the longest time anyone kept their eyelids open, submerged in saltwater». ALIGAGA presents this story as a jazz plus pop, rock n’ roll and some trip-hop pastiche, with many detours – and guests – that add more nuances to the adventurous and wild story.
But ALIGAGA knows how to sketch such a complex and dramatic story, with perfect doses of urgency, maturity and musical risk-taking, and, obviously, irresistible and seductive melodies and jubilant emotionality, as Guy Peters mentions in his liner notes. The story is narrated by Simon Vandueren and his brothers Theun and Joos and ALIGAGA in its own peculiar way adapts the individual, determined personality of Seyya. «I do what I do, not to be popular, I do it because I want to connect with everything and everyone, on this living plane. by asking questions». And, needless to add, the music of ALIGAGA certainly helps.
Eyal Hareuveni
Federco Corsini (double bass, voice), Leonard Steigerwald (piano, synthesizer, voice), Daniel Jonkers (drums, percussions, voice), Joos Vandueren (tenor sax, effects, voice), Jon Sensmeier (alto saxophone, effects, voice), Vanesa Diaz Gil (voice), Taejung Kim (guitar), Chaeyeon Lee (piano), Ee (tenor saxophone), Simon Vandueren (storyteller), Theun and Joos Vandueren (story characters)
