Recently, while laying around and doing absolutely nothing, thinking about what I was going to write for a Saturday’s post, a good friend, Denise (who manages Lloyd Brown, big album For Your Consideration in stores now), called me up to see what was going on and we ultimately ended up having a conversation (which may or may not have occurred) which was directed in one specific direction and you already know what that is (she is a manager after all). After that, however, it changed and we began to discuss another topic, veteran chanter Bigga Haitian’s new album Sak Pasé from Walkup Records. This is the actual account of that conversation (if it did happen) minus the managerial stuff she likes to go on about:
Denise: Hey Archis, how’s it going?
Achis: Who the hell is ‘Archis’?
Denise: Oh I’m sorry, A-CHIS.
Achis: Thank you, everything is just fine, it’s kind of cloudy, but I really don’t care. Y tu?
Denise: Everything’s great, trying to promote the album.
Achis: Yeah yeah.
Denise: So what’s going on today? Writing a review?
Achis: Trying to write a review, that’s what’s going on today, but struggling a little. But, I can always just write a review for some old ass Sizzla album and they won’t care.
Denise: You should do something different . . . Like a Lloyd Bro . . .
Achis: WOMAN!
Denise: I’m just saying.
Denise: What’s that playing in the background?
Achis: I don’t even know let me check - after I take another bite of this apple - Oh yeah yeah, that’s Bigga Haitian’s new album.
Denise: Bigga Whotian?
Achis: Bigga Haitian! The man has been around from forever, I swear the man is probably about 365 years old. He just put out a new album, Sak Pasé. It’s on a label from out of New York, Walkup Records I think he lives there now.
Denise: Never heard of them.
Achis: I hadn’t either, but apparently they do pretty good work up there, Bigga Haitian a big artist, man wouldn’t sign with rubbish I’m sure.
Denise: Is he the only Haitian Reggae artist you know?
Achis: Wy. . .
Denise: Besides Wyclef.
Achis: Uhhhhh. The only other pure Reggae artist from out of Haiti (and I’m sure there’re more), that’s jumping in my head is that little angry looking guy who Misty Jean let hang around her, Top Adlerman, crazy tune name ‘Ville’, playing crazy from longtime.
Denise: That sounds pretty good, why don’t you review that one, you said it’s new right?
Achis: Yeah I was thinking about it, but it’s only like eight tune and one is a remix, one is a remake and actually the remix is a remake of another tune also.
Denise: Oh, so you what you’re saying is that you wouldn’t have enough material to write one of those big ass things?
Achis: Basically. But I was still thinking about doing it anyway. You know an album have to be wicked for me to be considering dropping 2300 words on it with only eight tracks.
Denise: I can imagine. You said he’s been around a long time but is this his first album?
Achis: No. He had two before. The last one was Binghi Man, was a big album from a few years back yeah. And he had a one before that called I Am Back, but I don’t think too many people got their hands on that one.
Denise: So I just punched this one up, listening to some track clips, it sounds nice.
Achis: Yeah, it definitely has some vibes to it straight.
Denise: And his voice is unusual isn’t it?
Achis: Yeah Bigga has that Luciano and Bushman baritone thing going on, but he’s a straight forward chanter, it almost sounds exaggerated at some spots, but it’s all his voice as far as I know.
Denise: So I listened to the clip of the first tune ‘I Am A Haitian’, it sounds pretty good to me, what do you think of it?
Achis: Yeah that one is a MAGIC. It has that kind of Creole like acoustic sound to it. It’s hard to describe, but I think of ‘traditional’ Creole folk music and it always has that strumming sound to the vibes, as opposed to in Jamaica where most people will think of the DRUM as the foundation. This tune is the best one I hear on this album in a way. Let’s call it the best one that I never heard in any way, shape or form.
Denise: What is it actually about?
Achis: The base of it is being proud of one’s heritage and land of birth and really in my opinion, even though there’re the obvious overtones to Haiti.
Denise: Duh!
Achis: Yeah, even though they’re there, you can apply this one to ANYWHERE and the biggest part of the tune is at the end when Bigga talks straight on and he says, “Haiti, I love you. Almighty Emperor Selassie I, save Haiti”, you can literally sub-out “Haiti” for “the world”. I could do a . . .
Denise: Yeah, I know you could write about it for years and years.
Achis: Yep.
Denise: So what about ‘My Doorbell‘? And who is Craig Dreyer?
Achis: Craig Dreyer is a saxophone player. Apparently Walkup Records has a network of excellent musicians they deal with; they also work with Jerry Johnson and Cedric ‘IM’ Brooks who plays on this song also.
Denise: I’ve heard of him.
Achis. Yeah. Cedric Brooks is a big man. This tune is actually a remake of a tune by a group called the White Stripes.
Denise: I knew it sounded familiar.
Achis: Yeah I didn’t know that, I had to read the release, which was beautiful by the way; you should link them because that thing was gorgeous. And I heard the original and I like Bigga’s remake WAY more and you keep listening to the tune and Craig Dryer PLAYS HIS ASS OFF on the latter stages of it, I was sitting there listening to it and getting hype just listening to the an play. See, you play like that and you get a featuring credit on the album!
Denise: DAMN! So is ‘Empress’ the “obligatory”, as you like to say, tune for the ladies?
Achis: Of course Denise. This one is nice though. It makes its point and keeps its sonic appeal. He’s not even dealing with specifics in terms of like a one relationship, but Bigga’s talking about appreciating the Afrikan woman and the women in general more than we already do.
Denise: Yeah you guys do need to do that.
Achis: Who is “you guys”? I worship the ground my wife walks on.
Denise: WHATEVER!
Achis: Anyway, like I was saying, Bigga brings some of his best on Empress and the man actually makes a point that I, myself, made a few times when he says, “If you diss a Queen, then you disrespect your MOTHER!” Yow! I was straight cheering like LOUD when the man says that. It’s a big tune and at the end you get more straight BIG musicianship yeah. Some guy name Donovan McKitty PLUCKING his fingers off and Cedric Brooks and Clark Gayton take over at the end.
Denise: That sounds like some type of tune all you guys need to hear.
Achis: Yeah, all THOSE guys need to hear it.
Denise: Alright, alright. So what about ‘London Massive’? Who is Yvad?
Achis: Yvad has been around from awhile. The man used to sing for The Wailers and he has a LOVELY voice. And you can hear the nice contrast between deep bellowing voiced Bigga Haitian and Yvad and I don’t know why this tune is here, I would imagine that they did a show or a full tour in the UK, but it sounds so nice that I’m wishing that bcause Yvad is all over the album. . . Maybe he could’ve jumped on another track yeah. He even does some production for this tune for this one and the next track.
Denise: I just googled Yvad and he has his own thing going on.
Achis: Yeah he had an album a long time ago called Young, Gifted & Dread, it was released on Tuff Gong, but last year he jumped up with a few more nice singles like ‘Sweet Jamaica’ and a next one name ‘Preach’, which was a big tune.
Denise: I’ll have to check them out. And you said he worked on the next tune, ‘Gi Me Da Weed’, also?
Achis: Yeah. Apparently this tune was a pretty big hit.
Denise: Yeah I see they even put it out as a single.
Achis: Exactly, I saw that too and it’s not hard to see why when you get into the tune. It sounds EXCELLENT, it’s very catchy, it’s on a relatable vibes so, when people respond so much for it, it’s not too hard to see why you know. AND you can’t tell me you can’t see a club full of people yelling . . .
Denise: GIMME DI WEED!
Achis: There you go!
Denise: No, I’m serious.
Achis: I don’t share, I’m selfish.
Denise: Okay Mr. Selfish, what’s up with ‘Load My Chalice’? Who is Bam, Mecca aka Grimo and Jimmy Two? And two ganja tunes on the same album?
Achis: Okay, first of all, I don’t know who Bam is, but whoever he is, I hope he realize how difficult he is to look up. I THINK Jimmy O, who actually produces the tune works with Wyclef’s label which shares a name with this album and Mecca does also I believe. They’re like Haitian-American hip-hoppers and they ALL go in and out of Creole and English throughout the entire tune.
Denise: Sounds goo. . .
Achis: But that’s not the most important part of the tune.
Denise: HUH?
Achis: The song plays across this high-tech/souped up version of 'Ke’m Pa Soté'!
Denise: What in the world is a Ke’m Pa Soté?
Achis: The greatest song ever made and no. My heart does not jump.
Denise: Okayyyyyy. I’m going to leave that one alone. What about ‘Haiti A Weh Mi From’?
Achis: When I heard this tune on this album I just started singing it. Didn’t know where I knew it from, “Haiti a weh mi from, a weh mi from, a weh mi from. Haiti weh a mi from, from, from”. It’s an old Dancehall tune from like a quarter century ago and whoever’s idea it was to put it here is a genius. It’s in the original version too and damn near impossible to find outside of Sak Pasé now.
Denise: So is like a collector’s item now?
Achis: You could say that, but I hate to say that because it kind of denotes some kind of ‘staleness’ or something like that, like ‘it usedta be good’, but now it’s some shit. But that isn’t the case here, it’s still a very good song and one of the best on this, or any other album you’ll find it on.
Denise: And lastly is a ‘Mike ‘Angel’ McLaughlin Guitar Mix’ of My Doorbell?
Achis: Yeah yeah. Just listening to that one you can’t, or at least I couldn’t, tell much of a difference until near the end where Craig Dreyer’s saxophone is replaced by Mike ‘Angel McLaughlin’s electric guitar. HONESTLY, I think it was kind of useless, but I imagine if you like electric guitar, you might like it.
Denise: Play it for me.
Achis: Okay
Denise: Oh okay, well I kind of like it.
Achis: There you go.
Denise: So what do you think? I’m thinking about picking this one up.
Achis: Yeah I’d say it’s a pretty good purchase. I can’t really critique too much about it besides its length and I suppose it’s better to put out what you have than trying to FORCE something which may not be done well, but I just dealt with the Focus Riddim a little while ago and Bigga Haitian has two nice tunes on that one yeah. So maybe even just those two, but as it stands it’s probably the best eight tracked album that I’ve heard all year and it’s a helluva lot better than a few twenty track ones sameway. It’ll appeal to you if you like modern Roots Reggae, first and foremost of course, but there’s some Dancehall in there too and some Hip-Hop even still. So something for everyone, but not enough too far away from the arena of Reggae music. And it’s Bigga Haitian, so at least to me, with that man’s track record, it all but guarantees its quality.
Denise: Okay, you convinced me, I think I’m going to get it right now.
Achis: Cool
Denise: Okay, now lets talk about you doing another feature on Lloyd Bro. . .
Achis: Hey Denise, my wife is calling me, gotta go.
BALANCE
RasAchis
Rated 4/5
Walkup Records
2009
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