Ethiopiques 31

One assumed that the Ethiopiques catalogue had run its course, as it’s now almost a decade since the last volume appeared in 2017, the same year that series curator Francis Falceto won Songlines’ World Pioneeraward. But there’s unconfined joy that the fertile crate-digging has resumed with this set by Muluken Mèllèssè, whose 1972 recording ‘Hédètch alu’ kicked it all off more than 20 years ago as the opening track on Ethiopiques 1: The Golden Years of Modern Ethiopian Music, 1969–1975. Muluken, who died in America in 2024, was 18 when he recorded ‘Hédètch alu’, and it is included again here, alongside all the tracks from his self-titled debut album, produced by Ali ‘Tango’ Kaifa and released on his Kaifa label in 1976. Backed mostly by the Dahlak Band, his high-pitched voice possesses great lyricism, nuance and emotional depth whether singing romantic ballads, spiritual anthems or Ethio-funk dance numbers.