E Rodriguez laughs, pleased it’s not a video interviews. Half of the Afro-Cuban, genre-agnostic, and you may Juno award-winning duo OKAN, she jokes that they’re maybe not usually upwards so it very early. Loving on her own, the new active change whenever the lady mate (in every significance of your keyword) Magdelys Savigne suits. Both people riff on every most other with ease, picking right on up per other people’s sentences and you will creeping inside absolutely nothing humor and you will smirks.
Magdelys comes from Santiago de Cuba, when you find yourself Elizabeth grew up in the main city urban area, Havana. One another municipalities provides some other approaches to audio, that have Santiago are more traditional. At the same time, these are generally each other classically trained, and this brings in particular European taste. Now each other based in Canada, they’ve fused its isle lifestyle and you will Western european techniques towards the sonic hot pot that’s Toronto’s musical world.
The fresh new identity track and you will opener towards record album leads with a keen Afro-Cuban chant. They loosely means the storyline out-of a great deity coming in during the an alternative house and you may carrying out another type of lifetime. The brand new parallel is obvious. However, more than that it centers its lifestyle, which is inseparable of OKAN.
Following that, Espiral bleeds on the a wide variety of types – cha cha cha, pilon and you may bolero, whilst adding the new looks regarding people up to him or her… Anything from Brazilian shifts, in order to Turkish rhythms. This is actually the meaning behind Espiral. The newest sound spirals, it goes up to Cuba and you may bigger, picking right on up other styles.
Even with both being produced into the Cuba, they actually found from inside the Canada. Elizabeth had observed Magdelys during the Cuba… it had been hopeless on her behalf to not ever.
Even after a definite reverence to own Cuba, its relationship to the fresh island try challenging – to use their word
The women fulfilled when Elizabeth auditioned having Magdelys’ ring. “I expected a musician to help you trip with us, and it is greatest whenever they can enjoy something. She arrived to the fresh bend immediately. She you may sing beautifully and have fun with the violin. She you can expect to do everything,” Magdelys gushes. Both struck it off instantly, “Things led to some other, and with go out…,” she ce towards the rehearsal.”
“Magazines recommended me to write personal sounds. I felt that We wasn’t ready to produce songs and get an author, and you can she was the one who motivated myself,” Age waxes.
“It is (OKAN) all of our kids. All of our basic kids that we authored together with her and what we should do getting OKAN is actually pouring our minds involved with it.”
This like try main to help you OKAN, which alone mode center about Afro-Cuban dialect
It’s easier for Magdelys. Like Age, she misses her friends, “My personal mother – I haven’t seen the lady in the extended. That’s fundamentally the things i skip.” She teaches escort service Richmond CA you. “Anywhere that have a sea, I’m able to wade. There are so many Cubans international…easily skip Cubans, I could go truth be told there.” She continues to liken they so you can a bad old boyfriend. “You look as well as you merely recall the tough moments away from the relationship which will be style of unfortunate.”
But that’s prior to now, now they might be each other happy to have what exactly is next, particularly concert events, having create Espiral throughout a pandemic. “OKAN try a whole other experience alive!” Rodriguez beams. When you hear the new record you feel such as for instance you might be from the a concert. You could select for every means having good clarity – your guitar, Elizabeth’s violin, Magdelys’ percussions, castanets, an such like.
Their tune Baila Canada try a standout that will be all about delivering somebody moving. It’s fast paced featuring each other ladies on the voice, and you can a really lively violin solamente away from E. It’s an inside-joke… Within their almost 10 years when you look at the Canada, they will have unearthed that individuals do not dance. They made the new song in order to relax her or him up. OKAN isn’t really worried about you to definitely anymore immediately following getting cooped up having way too long, they’re yes every person’s irritation to move…. plus they are prepared to enjoy.