In Roots of Blues, Paris-based artist Karim Albert Kook transports listeners to a rich, textured constellation of heritage, history, and emotion. Kook's journey in music is supported by harmonica prodigy Édouard Bineau. This 10-song album is a heartfelt interpretation of blues standards steeped in authenticity and yet full of individual reinterpretation.
Kook's unique voicings of his resonator guitar employing open tuning with bottleneck slide bring to life the spirit of the Mississippi Delta, all the while sounding his Algerian-French heritage. Kook's gravel-tinged vocals add weight to each song, transforming simpler melodies into more vivid storytelling moments that lend themselves to perceptions of personal meaning. The emotive expression of Bineau's harmonica goes a long way in contextualizing the soulful essence of his playing by adding semblances of the cries and hopes that poured freely from juke joints and labor fields across the Southern half of the United States.
Beyond nostalgic homage, Roots of Blues is a cultural conversation. The histories of the duo reflect the migration themes of blues itself, rooted in exile, displacement, pain, and resilience. The works unfold like chapters of a much larger human narrative connecting the experiences and struggles of the past and present. By releasing this project, Karim Albert Kook not only preserves blues traditions but also reclaims and redefines blues. He reaffirms the idea that the blues are universal and as relevant now as ever before.
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