Journalist at RFI (ex-DW, BBC, CBC, F24...), writer (on art, music, culture...), I work in radio, podcasting, online, on films.
As a writer, I also contributed to the New Arab, Art UK, Byline Times, the i Paper...
Born in Paris, I was based in Prague, Miami, London, Nairobi (covering East Africa), Bangui, and in Bristol, UK. I also reported from Italy, Germany, Haiti, Tunisia, Liberia, Senegal, India, Mexico, Iraq, South Africa...
This blog is to share my work, news and cultural discoveries.
Raoul Peck's "Young Karl Marx" made it to this very prestigious list!!
Thank you The Guardian!
Along with "The Shape of Water", "Black Panther", "Loveless", "The Square" and "The Post"!!
Very proud...
Best films of 2018 so far
The very best of 2018, from Black Panther rewriting the rules for superheroes, Gary Oldman going to war as Churchill, and Maxine Peake blazing her way through 70s sexism
Raoul Peck’s film is an account of the birth of communism and the blossoming friendship between its key movers – a sort of bromance between Marx the poverty-stricken thinker, always spoiling for a fight, and rich-kid Engels, a dandy from a well-off background.
What we said: It gives you a real sense of what radical politics was about: talk. There is talk, talk and more talk. It should be dull, but it isn’t. Somehow the spectacle of fiercely angry people talking about ideas becomes absorbing and even gripping.
MARTINA RELEASES A NEW SINGLE, ANNOUNCES AN UPCOMING EP
June 15, 2018
Martina Topley-Bird returns with Solitude, a candid statement in Martina's trademark detached, strong yet fragile, sensual style. “You said you needed me, you said I promised, you being honest, depended on your mood, you took solitude for food.” Recorded in Baltimore where Martina has been based over the last 4 years, created in conjunction with new US-based team, the single is an introduction to her upcoming 4 track EP titled MTB Continued.
Born out of themes of internal and external discord, Solitude explores the journey through a troubled world and a reflection on human conflicts, the comfort and torment of solitude and the fragility of life’s balance.
The release comes 8 years after Topley-Bird’s last album Some Place Simple, and a string of acclaimed collaborations.
La 5e édition de « Danse Élargie »
a lieu ce week-end, les 16 et 17 juin 2018, au Théâtre de la Ville à Paris, Espace
Cardin. Parmi les spectacles, celui de la chorégraphe basée à Oslo Mia
Habib, « ALL-A PHYSICAL POEM OF PROTEST », avec les danseurs et
artistes Povilas Bastys, Tarek Halaby, Hanna Mjåvatn, Linn Ragnarsson, Ingunn
Rimestad, Jules Beckman. L’occasion de se pencher sur le travail unique de ce
dernier. Jules Beckman est un musicien, danseur et performeur américain basée
dans le sud de la France. Régulièrement à Paris, il répand un art chamanique
incroyablement poétique et radicalement novateur. Portrait.
Crédit photo: Emeline Guillaud
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Par Mélissa Chemam
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Jules décrit Danse Elargie comme
un « genre de concours international de danse ». 18 compagnies
sélectionnées à partir de 400 dossiers sont invitées à présenter une pièce de dix
minutes. La leur comprend une « chorégraphie de 30 corps représentant une
forme d’incarnation humaine tourbillonnante du système solaire »…
La chorégraphe, Mia Habib, la
décrit ainsi : Un « poème physique né de l'observation des mouvements
de migrations et de soulèvements populaires. Les corps investissent l’espace
par deux actions : la marche et la course. Les interactions sociales et le
rythme des sons apparaissent pour donner lieu à la progression du groupe ».Mia Habib est une interprète et
chorégraphe résidant à Oslo. Elle a dansé pour Carte Blanche, la compagnie
nationale de danse contemporaine norvégienne dirigée par Hooman Sharifi.
Poésie et protestation. Thèmes
particulièrement présents dans le travail de Jules Beckman, l’un des danseurs,
qui lui réside dans le sud de la France, près d’Aubagne, et se produit
régulièrement en solo à Paris, Marseille et Bruxelles. En octobre 2017, il
était au Théâtre de la Colline pour le spectacle « Le Poète
aveugle », créé par Jan Lauwers et la NeedCompany dont il fait partie avec Grace Ellen
Barkey, Anna Sophia Bonnema, Hans Petter Melø Dahl, Benoît Gob, Maarten
Seghers, Mohamed Toukabri, Elke Janssens et Jan Lauwers. Mêlant musique, danse,
théâtre, performance et intervention, ce spectacle raconte, inspiré par le
parcours des artistes qui composent la compagnie, une série d’aventure de
migrations… D’Indonésie à la Chine, de la Tunisie à Londres, des Etats-Unis à
la France, etc. Leurs références vont d’Homère au poète syrien aveugle Abu al ‘ala al Ma’arri. Le
message : Si l’histoire est écrite par les vainqueurs, par des hommes, par
des individus qui dictent à la masse ce qu’elle doit faire... D’autres versions
existent...
Le parcours de Jules l’a mené de
New York à la Californie puis à la France. Compositeur, chanteur bilingue,
multi-instrumentiste, il est aussi danseur, poète et performeur. Son propre
spectacle, « Pleasure Test », présenté au Silencio à Paris en mai
dernier, il le mène en ce moment dans plusieurs villes européennes.
Vidéo – trailer :
« Pleasure Test » : Le spectateur à
l’épreuve du spectacle
Le spectacle se présente d’abord comme
un concert, celui d’un musicien américain à l’hypersensibilité perceptible… Il
parle à son public et passe de la guitare à la batterie, du clavier au
triangle, puis perd le fil… C’est pour nous parler de ses fragilités qu’il est
là, en fait, pour « connecter avec son public ».
L’humour guide le travail et
l’écriture de Jules Beckman. Passant aisément de l’anglais au français, il
s’inspire de sa passion pour les philosophies existentielles, occidentales et
asiatiques, mais sans le moindre sérieux académique, pour les questionner, et
ainsi les ramener à la vie. Et pourtant, ses compositions rock and folk n’en
sont pas moins éblouissantes. D’où le sous-titre du show
peut-être : « Rock Ritual Stand Up Anarchy »…
« Jules Beckman retourne à
l'excitation, à la joie, et à la terreur, avec sa propre marque spéciale de
rituel, de performance ‘soul’ », selon Neva Chonin du San Francisco
Chronicle. Beckman combine la chanson et la danse dans une incroyable
présentation.
« Les êtres humains ont une
pulsion de mort, un esprit destructeur », explique Jules en parlant de son
spectacle. « On peut aussi reconnaître cette force de manière mondiale.
On vit collectivement un moment dans l’histoire où la question de
l’autodestruction est difficile à nier. Le seul fait inchangeable : la mort.
L’homme voudrait maitriser sa mort. Il veut prendre le contrôle de la seule
chose incontrôlable : sa propre mort, détenir le pouvoir de décider du
moment. C’est comme un caprice d’enfant, une crise de nerfs, une réaction
contre le fait de notre vulnérabilité. L’antidote serait-il d’apprendre à
supporter le vide, d’accepter notre fragilité ? »
Réflexions sur la masculinité, sur
le deuil, sur notre dialogue avec l’au-delà, sur la place de l’homme et surtout
de sa capacité à créer dans nos sociétés occidentales, enfin sur le nomadisme
et le besoin naturel de l’individu d’explorer et de se déplacer, son concert se
mute en performance et en voyage, presqu’une quête de sens dans laquelle il
espère amener le public. Il s’adresse pour cela directement à lui, puis pour la
dernière partie, culminante, implique quatre personne du public dans un rituel
puissant : il leur confie la tâche de verser de l’eau sur quatre caisse de
tambour sur lesquelles il s’acharnent…Vêtu d’un nouveau costume, muni d’un
couteau aiguisé, le performeur entreprend de lâcher ses fantômes et ses démons
personnels, mais non sans les avoir reconnu et regardé en face d’abord.
« Partout dans le monde, des
gens cachent leurs visages pour parler à Dieu », ajoute Jules, « pour
faire leur rituel, pour transcender l’ordinaire. Le sacré magique nous oblige
à rompre la linéarité et l'identité quotidienne. La question ‘Qui suis-je?’
peut vous rendre fou. Le masque donne un répit à cette question sans réponse
parce que, pour une fois que je suis libre de ne pas être moi ».
Tour à tour poétique, hilarant et
chamanique, « Pleasure Test » est une sorte de miroir déformant de
notre culture, où le spectacle peut être tellement codifié qu’il n’a plus rien
à dire de nouveau. Ici, point de codes. La liberté et la folie reprennent leur
droit. Et tout le monde se sent plus léger après cette cathartique mise en danger
collective…
Cornwall cacks its pants as Massive Attack bring the bass and politics to the Eden Project
Sublime and they're back to do it all over again tonight
The bass. Oh the rolling, booming, quaking bass. You didn’t know whether you were going to touch cloth or touch the face of God.
Massive Attack are one of those bands that have been mentioned as a dream Eden Sessions headliner since the concert series started back in 2002. Finally it happened – a homecoming of sorts. Although as Bristol as they come, both the remaining kingpins Robert ‘3D’ Del Naja and Grant ‘ Daddy G’ Marshall have homes in Cornwall.
It was worth the wait, the first of two nights – their only UK shows of 2018 – was an all-out art attack, but without that annoying Liverpudlian presenter. The audience’s senses and synapses were bludgeoned by the perfect amalgam of groove, noise and visuals.
And what visuals. Daily Mail readers would have been exiting through the biomes. With quiet stealth over the past 20 years, Massive Attack have become the most political band on the planet; skewing party and global politics, warfare and anything that sullies their radar, often giving voice to protesters and activists in the process.
Robert Del Naja in the spotlight(Image: Tom Trinkle / Eden Project)
So on Friday night, quotes from Trump and Farage knowingly sidled up to those by Goebbels as a meaningless morass of Facebook posts collided with ever-growing, brainwashing LIKE, LIKE, LIKES and affecting images of Syrian refugees made you feel uncomfortable for dancing in a safe European greenhouse. The photographs were by Giles Duley, who lost three limbs in Afghanistan and talks about the legacy of war at Saturday’s Eden Session.
3D and Daddy G, augmented by a cracking band of musicians in the shadows, make you think as you sway. Was it right to be taken by the rhythm while the screen showed the moment by moment dialogue of a drone attack? Chilling.
It was anything but hard-going though. A wonderfully serpentine Inertia Creeps was accompanied by the day’s headlines, from the serious to the Kardashian. There were two local stories – low flying aircraft spotted over Cornwall and a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it dig at last week’s headliner, Gary Barlow’s Confetti-gate, when the pop star got all environmentally unfriendly in the garden of Eden.
The sound was stunning, among the best I’ve heard, not just as Eden but anywhere. Maybe it had something to do with the new state-of-the-art bass speakers Massive Attack brought with them. Twelve of the mighty things, I believe.
3D and Daddy G bring the noise(Image: Tom Trinkle / Eden Project)
For a casual Massive Attack fan, the set started perfectly. Their ecological classic Hymn of the Big Wheel was the obvious opener in such surroundings, Horace Andy’s mellifluous tones as familiar and warm as a hug from your dad, while D and G arrived on stage for the sinister slide of Risingson.
But this is Massive Attack so we were never going to get an easy ride. There was a spattering of latter period MA’s darker, more challenging songs from 2016’s Ritual Spirit EP, including the title track, where they were joined by the dreamlike tones of gig opener Azekel, and unexpected encore opener Take It There – not an obvious choice when favourites like Teardrop and Paradise Circus had been omitted.
Then there were the songs with Young Fathers – Voodoo in My Blood and He Needs Me (a track only available on the Assassin’s Creed soundtrack). Mesmerising, yes, but not built for mass appeal.
The Edinburgh post-rap trio were unbelievably good in their own slot earlier in the evening. Up there with Vampire Weekend and the Beta Band as the best support act in Eden’s history. Their tribal collision of hip hop, soul, funk, punk and gospel is unique (unless you’ve heard New York’s TV On The Radio before, though Young Father’s stew is much more palatable); tracks like Toy, Get Up and In My View, though punishing, drew a big crowd who danced to the stentorian groove.
Young Fathers. The best Eden support slot yet?(Image: Tom Trinkle / Eden Project)
With just a drummer and backing track (which broke down at one point much to member Graham Hastings’ visible annoyance) all eyes were on the fabulous Alloysious Massaquoi and Kayus Bankole, the latter looking frightening even when wearing a canary yellow shirt and shaking his bum at the crowd. Scowling off without a word, they meant it, man.
Massive Attack scoured their back catalogue from beginning (a sublime Unfinished Sympathy with guest singer Deborah Miller surpassing Shara Nelson’s original vocal) to end (incessant versions of United Snakes and Splitting The Atom).
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Massive Attack Eden Sessions setlist
Hymn of the Big Wheel
Risingson
United Snakes
Ritual Spirit
Eurochild
Girl I Love You
Future Proof
Voodoo in My Blood
He Needs Me
Angel
Inertia Creeps
Safe From Harm
Take It There
Unfinished Sympathy
Splitting the Atom
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The highlight? Safe From Harm is always immense, if only for that circling Billy Cobham bass line and another exquisite Deborah Miller vocal. The version at Eden went somewhere else entirely though. As the song broke down around a rising wave of guitar it suddenly exploded into a rampant, hypnotic collision of noise and groove (I’ve used that word too often but it IS all about the groove). You didn’t want it to end. Just when you thought it would end but hoped it wouldn’t, it didn’t.
My mate turned to me at its climax and said he'd reached sexual heaven three times during the song ... but not quite in those words. I know exactly where he's coming from.
Begbie himself, actor Robert Carlisle, was watching. Now that's a seal of approval.
I caught up with Sessions founder John Empson after the gig who told me it was in his Top 3 Eden shows. I wouldn’t argue with that. It was so good I’m going back tonight, if only for the final few minutes of Safe From Harm.
I was at a talk yesterday about African cinema and a fantastic journalist mentioned this film.
You have to see it!
Some of you might remember I have lived in Kenya between 2010 and 1012. It is very dear to my heart. I learned a lot in East Africa, it literally opened my eyes on the realities of our world. Being able to be a witness and a storyteller is a privilege. It is a role of bridging. It should never be taken for granted or irresponsibly. That's why I became a journalist. Utterly grateful of that experience.
This film reflects a lot of the Kenya I've seen.
PUMZI - TRAILER
Trailer For PUMZI a Short film Produced By Inspired Minority and Writer/Director: Wanuri Kahui
Producers: Simon Hansen, Hannah Slezacek and Amira Quinlan. VFX by Atomic VFX. Vfx Supervisor Simon Hansen. Executive Producer Steven Markowitz. Produced with the support of Focus Features Africa First, Goethe Institute and Changamato Fund
Pumzi is in comeptition at Sundance 2010. - Kenyan Sci-Fi Short Pumzi Hits Sundance With Dystopia
Wire, 2010
Pumzi, Kenya’s first science fiction film, imagines a dystopian future 35 years after water wars have torn the world apart. East African survivors of the ecological devastation remain locked away in contained communities, but a young woman in possession of a germinating seed struggles against the governing council to bring the plant to Earth’s ruined surface. The short film, which will compete in screen at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, “started off as a small script about what kind of world we would have to be if we had to buy fresh air,” writer/director Wanuri Kahiu told Wired.com in a Skype interview.
Like recent standouts District 9 and Sleep Dealer, the short film taps into Third World realities and spins them forward for dramatic effect. But to produce Pumzi, Kahiu looked to the past, as well as the future.
She researched classic 1950s films to create her movie’s futuristic sets, comparing the processes of matte paintingand rear-screen projection with indigenous African artwork.
“We already have a tradition of tapestries and functional art and things like that, that loan a backdrop for films,” Kahiu said.
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Africa & science fiction: Wanuri Kahiu's "Pumzi", 2009 | Interview
Interview of Kenyan film writer/director Wanuri Kahiu, about "Africa and science fiction", in reference to the sci-fi movie she wrote and directed: Pumzi, 2009 [trailer: http://youtu.be/3elKofS43xM]
This interview is part of the exhibition "Si ce monde vows déplaît" in FRAC Lorraine, Metz (France). More details about this event here: http://www.fraclorraine.org/explorez/...]
Special Thanks to Wanuri Kahiu and Moulin d'Andé.
Interview by Oulimata Gueye.
Hey England, I'll be in Bristol on July 1st, for the launch of Classic Album Sundays at Bristol Spirit with a local classic: Massive Attack's iconic Mezzanine, played on an audiophile sound system...
And we'll talk about how the record came about, of course.
Details:
Bristol Spirit in BS5 has been chosen as the Bristol venue for Classic Album Sundays – the world’s most popular album listening experience. The Redfield bar joins the CAS family increasing the number to 15 satellites in cities throughout the world including London, NYC, Chicago, Miami, Berlin, Sydney, Oslo, Fukuoka and more.
The Classic Album Sundays Bristol programme is kicking off on Sunday July 1st with Mezzanine by Massive Attack. Tickets cost £6.00 and can be purchased here.
The event starts with a talk by a special guest, and then the album is listened to in its entirety before the evening finishes with a brief Q&A.
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Bristol Spirit is co-owned by friends Sam Espensen and Phil Gillies, who also own Espensen Spirit, a range of naturally infused gins, vodkas and whiskies – Bristol Spirit is the equivalent of a beer tap room for their spirits. They serve a range of cocktails, local beers, ciders, wine, mocktails and hot drinks, which will all be available for the Classic Album Sunday events.
The bar has become known for its excellent playlists and its musical events, including Sunday soul lunches, a Bowie Brunch and a Beastie Boys bottomless punch brunch.
If Classic Album Sunday guests wish to, they can also enjoy a Sunday roast at Bristol Spirit before the programme begins. If you would like to book for this you can do so separately via info@espensenspirit.com.
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The Classic Album Sundays event programme at Bristol Spirit will be co-curated by Sam Espensen and the music journalist Laura Williams.
Sam Espensen, founder, Bristol Spirit, says “To say we are happy to be chosen as the venue for Classic Album Sundays is a bit of an understatement – this is a dream gig for any music nerd. Bristol has and always will be driven and moulded by music, and its influence resonates throughout the world – it’s one of the reasons I named our bar Bristol Spirit – referring to the buccaneering attitude of the locals – which is heavily influenced and responsible for the city’s musical heritage. What better place to start our Classic Album Sundays programme than with Mezzanine?”
Tony Revelle, director of Audio T says “We are delighted to be asked to be the audio partner for Classic Album Sundays Bristol. All of us at Audio T are very enthusiastic about live music and therefore we are also passionate about re-producing music faithfully in the home. For that reason we have always sold and serviced turntables, and we believe that a good vinyl system is capable of providing a wonderfully involving sound quality.”
Colleen Murphy, Classic Album Sundays founder, added “At our listening sessions, music fans are able to immerse themselves into an album that has helped shape our culture and in some cases, our lives.We relay the artist and album’s unique story and provide a musical context that gives the listening experience deeper meaning. We share the experience of hearing the album in its entirety, on vinyl, and on a world-class audiophile hi-fi so that fans can experience the music as close as possible to the artist’s original intention.
Classic Album Sundays treats the album with the respect it deserves rather than as a free commodity or aural wallpaper. We remind people what they love about music. Bristol is a city doused in musical excellence, and Bristol Spirit and Audio T are great champions of that heritage.”
