We Went There: Moor Mother at Walker Art Center
Moor Mother, the nom de guerre of artist Camae Ayewa, brought her project The Great Bailout to the Walker Art Center on September 14th for the pieces first ever performance in the United States, and it lived up to the hype.
Bringing together an all-star eight piece ensemble of performers from across the country, the group performed the piece for the first set, then expanded into a jam session that reached dizzying heights for the second set. They ended the night with a thoughtful, engaging Q&A session that culminated with a round of singing the Stevie Wonder version of Happy Birthday for one of their music comrades.
According to the program given to all guests, the music of the Great Bailout is meant to be “through the lens and practice of Black Quantum Futurism,” and was meant to draw attention to the United Kingdom’s 1837 Slave Compensation Act, which “gave tax bailouts to former slave owners, but nothing to the liberated people.” There wasn’t a linear storytelling throughout the piece, and if you were dropped in mid performance you may have been confused by the text on the screen behind the performers as it never totally told the story of what happened, but knowing what was being referenced made it a chill-inducing, powerful piece of musical art.
The band included the rotating cast who played drums, electronics, horns, piano, upright and electric bass, guitar and percussive tap dancing. There was emotive singing, electronic manipulation and some spoken word. The music explored free jazz, spiritual ambient jazz, deep grooves and soundscapes. It swept over the crowd and showcased a historical lineage of music created out of, and in spite of, the chaos referenced in the source material.
It was an incredibly powerful, compelling and eye opening set that I would see again in a heartbeat. I’m not totally clear if this configuration of artists was only for this performance, but either way if you have a chance to see Moor Mother’s vision and art in person, you shouldn’t miss out.
This was part of the Liquid Music series that is often, though not entirely, held at the Walker Art Center. I’d highly suggest seeing any of their offerings as the curation behind these shows almost always means you’ll see something unique, powerful, and something that will hopefully broaden your horizon. Moor Mother and her crew certainly did this with their outstanding The Great Bailout performance.
Writer / co-founder
