Customer Reviews

Vodou Adjae

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Boukman rocks my world! The music--more grass roots than Haiti's Compa, if you ask me--is so blessed, so politically charged and just, damn GOOD. You need not speak Kreyol to FEEL the essence of Haiti--the drums, the voices, the yelps of pleasure. I am a dancer and Voudou Adjae warms me up. Hips sway, arms wave, feet stomp and chests thrust. Nou pap sa bliye-Se Kreyol Nou ye! Ayibobo! Boukman sounds like home.

If VODOU ADJAE by Boukman Eksperyans sound familiar now, it's only because hundreds of Haitain recordings that followed it were (and still are) trying to copy its style. Very few artist have occupied and captured the Haitain cultural consciousness like these artist have. Like rap's Public Enemy ("It Takes A Nation Of Millions"), Boogie Down Production ("Criminal Minded" "By All Means Necessary"), reggae's Bob Marley (singing about the life and the struggles of his peoples) and R&B legend Marvin Gaye, Boukman Eksperyans have change Haitain music forever. VODOU ADJAE is a flawless masterpiece that distills the myriad experiences of our (not just Hatains) daily lives into a collective unconsciousness of 50 minutes of aural perfection. Without any doubt, this classic is one bright creation that will continue to shine long after the other albums of its time fade.

For many years, my passion has always been music. I am piano and guitar player.I used to listen to only classical and country music From all the types of music I used to listen to, Racine is my favorite. Since I come across Boukman's music in 1990, listening to Bouman Eksperyans CD becomes my passion. Boukman Eksperyans is the only group that brings our cultural root alive and subsequently joins people together in their deeply inspirational and soulful types of songs. I am a big fan of Boukman and I congratulate Lolo and Manze for the outstading work they are doing for all those years. I hope that God can protect and help you with all your are doing.

This album took me forever to find, but it was worth it. I know people have been throwing the term "classic" around as of late and it seems rather cliche, but this CD is a definite classic. Boukman Eksperyans, Vodou Adjae is an amazing piece of musical creativity, inventiveness, ingenuity, and is overall magic.

I've been a fan of Haitian music for years...when this album came out it spelled the end of the urbane Kompa music that had dominated the haitian music scene for decades. The songs are long and based on traditional rara beats from the voudoun religion brought over from West Africa. This is Hatian roots ("racines") music and once you hear it you will be hooked. Songs here like Ke'm pa sote and Se Kreyol Nou Ye revived Haitian music and culture by simply revelling in it. Gone was the slick production of the Kompa records and the allure of cosmopolitan expatriation, Boukman Eksperyans with Voudou Adjae created a new earthy, natural and (unavoidably) political brew. The rhythms are infectious, the melodies are sublime, the lyrics poignent and the politics downright heady. After more than 15 years it is still a joy to rediscover. This is worth seeking out.

This album has a certain rythm, excitement, enthusiasm and freshness that their other albums don't have even though their execellent (****). I guess it's because it was Boukman's first album.