Yapa: A review

Originally intended as a serious review, it didn't see the printing press so instead its on my blog! Enjoy and be jealous folks!

One warm winter’s evening a friend of mine hooked a few of us up with tickets to see French/African Jazz band Yapa play at The Park hotel In Hyderabad. The area where they were to play was gorgeous enough by itself – a slice carved out of the pretty avant-garde, modernist hotel looking out onto the Hussainsagar lake. This however meant we were open to the elements and with a train station right beside the hotel, I was dreading the acoustical nightmare this was sure to be. Boy, was I wrong.

As Jazz bands go, three guitarists and a drummer is a pretty rare affair. But Yapa manages to pull it off through the sheer talent of its members. They started the event ambitiously promising take a mixed audience comprising many people who had come there mainly to socialize, on a journey. And that is exactly what they managed to do – transport anyone that gave them half a ear to that place where a warm summery feeling engulfs you. After all one of the charms of World Music is its ability to make you drift away to a place of the artist’s choosing.

‘Projet #X’ from their 2008 album ‘Can I talk to you’, is a happy ride punctuated by the innovative rhythms of the drummer. ‘Maya’ was inspired by a lake on their Balkan tour and reflects the ebb and flow of a potentially life –sustaining water body. Their 2010 serving – ‘Pariwaga’ speaks to their connection to Ouagadougou (couldn’t resist mentioning a name like that!) and the rest of Bukina Faso where the album was recorded. With minimal post production ‘Sindi Deni Ma’ is a good example of the use of indigenous elements – in this case the smooth, bluesy vocals provided by Burkina’s ‘under ground legend’ Victor Démé. ‘A Mobylette’ is sure to take you to away to some balmy evening of Sangria and Salsa. Somewhere towards the end of the gig (I had lost track of individual songs and was instead enjoying the overall effect) they showcased their talent best. An approaching train was turned into an impromptu backing track, with the drummer playing some beats over it and one of the guitarists joining in. As the train came and went, they seamlessly blended this playing along into another melodious piece.

In a world where good Jazz bands that create their own music are sadly few and far between, and live performances of the same are like gold dust, Yapa deserve much appreciation. Their website tells me they re-invested their earnings from increasingly large gigs to produce their first two albums. Or as they quaintly term it – their records! Long may this happy endeavor continue.