{"id":614597,"date":"2024-03-27T21:10:38","date_gmt":"2024-03-27T18:10:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/let-amirtha-kidambis-new-monuments-be-your-call-to-action\/"},"modified":"2024-03-27T21:10:38","modified_gmt":"2024-03-27T18:10:38","slug":"let-amirtha-kidambis-new-monuments-be-your-call-to-action","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/let-amirtha-kidambis-new-monuments-be-your-call-to-action\/","title":{"rendered":"#Let Amirtha Kidambi\u2019s New Monuments be your call to action"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3e775ac4c5c\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3e775ac4c5c\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/let-amirtha-kidambis-new-monuments-be-your-call-to-action\/#The_new_album_from_Kidambis_Elder_Ones_collective_is_a_fiery_blend_of_free_jazz_Carnatic_ragas_and_spoken-word_poetry_dedicated_to_those_who_fight_for_change\" >The new album from Kidambi\u2019s Elder Ones collective is a fiery blend of free jazz, Carnatic ragas, and spoken-word poetry dedicated to those who fight for change.<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"deck\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_new_album_from_Kidambis_Elder_Ones_collective_is_a_fiery_blend_of_free_jazz_Carnatic_ragas_and_spoken-word_poetry_dedicated_to_those_who_fight_for_change\"><\/span>The new album from Kidambi\u2019s Elder Ones collective is a fiery blend of free jazz, Carnatic ragas, and spoken-word poetry dedicated to those who fight for change.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"content_blocks\">\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-260917\" class=\"content_block breaker triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left image\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<p>  <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_1440,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_220,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 220w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_300,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 300w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_400,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 400w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_600,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 600w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_750,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 750w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_840,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 840w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_960,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 960w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_1260,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 1260w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_1800,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 1800w,https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/w_2400,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:best\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_kbkypl\/amirtha-kidambi-s-elder-ones-current-lineup-photo-by-caroline-harrison.jpg 2400w,\" sizes=\"100vw\" alt=\"Let Amirtha Kidambi\u2019s &lt;i&gt;New Monuments&lt;\/i&gt; be your call to action\"><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"img_caption\"><\/p>\n<p>    <span class=\"caption\"><br \/>\n      Amirtha Kidambi\u2019s Elder Ones (current lineup). Photo by Caroline Harrison.<br \/>\n    <\/span><\/p>\n<p>  <span class=\"credit\"><br \/>\n      \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-260918\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            For most of her career, <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/kidominator\/\">Amirtha Kidambi<\/a> didn\u2019t refer to herself as an activist, in the same way she didn\u2019t consider herself a Carnatic singer despite studying the form for years. Both of these practices, she explained in a <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/thequietus.com\/articles\/23474-amirtha-kidambi-interview\">2017 interview<\/a>, are lifelong callings. And Kidambi, while channeling both a revolutionary spirit and elements of Carnatic music \u2014 a form of classical Indian songcraft rooted in ancient Hindu traditions \u2014 in her explosive strain of free jazz, has tended to follow her own, separate vision. In her earliest works, she sang strictly in phonemes, avoiding not only English words but also the symbolically significant syllables associated with Carnatic ragas and the tropes of jazz scatting (e.g. \u201cdaba-dooby\u201d). \u201cI wanna be a horn!\u201d she said in the same interview. \u201cI want to have the freedom to be liberated from text when I\u2019m into a solo or improvising.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            In recent years, however, she\u2019s stepped into the role of activist with fervor. During 2020\u2019s George Floyd protests, she organized musicians to preempt potential violence from cops in riot gear with the force of their instruments. An active member of New York City\u2019s DIY scene since her arrival in 2009, she now undeniably occupies a leadership position.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"content_block paragraph triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-260919\" class=\"content_block paragraph embed triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\">\n    <iframe style=\"border: 0; width: 350px; height: 588px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=2478276308\/size=large\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/transparent=true\/\" seamless><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/wejazzrecords.bandcamp.com\/album\/new-monuments\">New Monuments by Amirtha Kidambi&#8217;s Elder Ones<\/a><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-260920\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            <i>New Monuments<\/i>, Kidambi\u2019s third album at the helm of her rotating collective Elder Ones, is both an artistic tour de force and the most incisive clarion call in her catalog. A four-part ode to \u201call those who tirelessly organize and resist against insurmountable headwinds,\u201d it finds Kidambi incorporating more text into her music than ever before, stirring strands of traditional singing into a stew of extended technique, using repeated phrases to articulate messages too urgent to transmit via abstract sound.<\/p>\n<p>            About a third of the way through the project\u2019s opener, \u201cThird Space,\u201d for instance, her squeaks and moans fade out along with a theremin-like synth and Lester St. Louis\u2019s frantic cello bowing, making way for a steady groove in the bass-and-drum rhythm section (Eva Lawitz and Jason Nazary, respectively) that\u2019s mirrored by Matt Nelson\u2019s soprano sax and a morphing mantra from Kidambi: \u201cYou\/They\/We don\u2019t belong here.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div>\n<p>            \u201cFarmer\u2019s Song,\u201d a track inspired by the North Indian farmers\u2019 protests, charts an opposite course, starting with a structured, phonemic groove before denaturing into abstract English. Kidambi stretches the syllables of English words beyond their sn<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ing points, separating and reattaching them to their meaning at will. This alchemy is accomplished over an immensely complex slurry of analog synths and live instruments, including Kidambi\u2019s quavering, hand-pumped harmonium.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-260921\" class=\"content_block breaker triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left video\">\n<div class=\"media_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"video_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"fluid-width-video-wrapper\" style=\"padding-top: 56.25%;\">\n<p>    <iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Amirtha Kidambi\u2019s Elder Ones: New Monuments\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/gFNeGVAboRY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n \/\/trackYouTubeVideo('260921');\n<\/script><\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"content_block paragraph triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<style>\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"content_block-260922\" class=\"content_block paragraph text triple_gutter_right triple_gutter_left center_align\">\n<div class=\"content_inner_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"paragraph_wrapper center_align\">\n<p>            Where the first half of <i>New Monuments<\/i> deals in fragments, the album\u2019s second side is more direct. The record\u2019s title is uttered (in its titular track) as part of its de facto mission statement: \u201cWe will build new monuments to \/ Those who suffered centuries through. \/ We will build new monuments to \/ Those who have no rights, those who lost their lives.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>            <i>New Monuments<\/i>\u2019 closer, \u201cThe Great Lie,\u201d is, unlike the record\u2019s first three slowly developed songs, packed full of text, though still punctuated by passages of pure improvisation (Nelson\u2019s sax solo alone is evidence of free music\u2019s ecstatic potential). It\u2019s as if the words have been accumulating in Kidambi\u2019s throat all record long, waiting for its final track\u2019s dirgelike intro to spill out in a near monotone. Though it\u2019s never clearly defined, the great lie she sings of is an amalgamation of smaller ones: that the pursuit of happiness must come at the expense of others, that we\u2019re too weak to rise up against the overwhelming power of the ruling class, that we need to shoulder our burdens in solitude.<\/p>\n<p>            Kidambi is living proof of this final myth\u2019s falsehood. Even as she\u2019s continued to forge her own path, obsessed with making art that\u2019s truly original, she\u2019s rarely walked it alone. She wrote the majority of <i>New Monuments<\/i> in 2020 but spent the next two years fine-tuning it with her band through trial and error at live shows before sitting down to record. Like all effective activists \u2014 and most great improvisers \u2014 Kidambi knows that collaboration is the surest path to impact.<\/p>\n<div class=\"\" style=\"padding-bottom: 20px; margin-top: 20px; text-align: left;\">\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"author\">\n    <span><br \/>\n      By <span class=\"credit_name\">Raphael Helfand<\/span><br \/>\n  <\/span><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Like this articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/social-media\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Social Media category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thefader.com\/2024\/03\/27\/amirtha-kidambi-new-monuments-discover-blogly\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The new album from Kidambi\u2019s Elder Ones collective is a fiery blend of free jazz, Carnatic ragas, and spoken-word poetry dedicated to those who fight for change. Amirtha Kidambi\u2019s Elder Ones (current lineup). Photo by Caroline Harrison. \u00a0 For most of her career, Amirtha Kidambi didn\u2019t refer to herself as an activist, in the same&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":614598,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefader-res.cloudinary.com\/private_images\/c_limit,w_1024\/c_crop,h_533,w_1024,x_0,y_103,f_auto,q_auto:eco\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_qo72wx\/Amirtha_Kidambi_s_Elder_Ones_by_Caroline_Harrison_qo72wx.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[149491,147820,149492,87515,71136],"class_list":["post-614597","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-social-mediaa","tag-amirtha-kidambi","tag-discover-blogly","tag-elder-ones","tag-experimental","tag-jazz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/614597","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=614597"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/614597\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/614598"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=614597"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=614597"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=614597"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}