Minu Cinélu/Nils Petter Molvær - SulaMadiana review | John Fordham's jazz album of the month

The Guardian 80

(Modern Recordings/BMG)
Percussionist and trumpeter create sparkling musical conversations across disparate cultural backgrounds, recalling Miles Davis, Afrobeat and more

This duo’s sonically colourful, teemingly inventive album splices its title from the west Norwegian island of Sula and a popular synonym for the Caribbean island of Martinique. Nordic ambient trumpeter Nils Petter Molvær has origins on the former and Mino Cinélu, the former Weather Report and Miles Davis percussionist, has family from the latter. If the intertwining of those far-flung roots suggests wide-open spaces, jazz/improv surprises and African rhythmic inspirations, they’re all sewn into the tapestry of this entrancing session. Cinélu says: “We both know each other’s cultures, we find bridges and crossings, and when we walk these paths they lead in the same direction.”