Ithaka's Somewhere South of Somalia album review

Big Baer Magazine: The Urban Alternative Music Magazine

November 19th 2001

Let me start by telling you the ending” Run, don’t walk, and buy this CD! Don’t miss out on one of hip hop’s most original releases of the year!”

Somewhere South of Somalia, the third album to be released from the artist Ithaka, is the

freshest compilation of hip hop beats, rap lyrics and spoken word that I have heard in a very long time. If you are feeling hip hop but are more than a little tired of hearing rappers spit about ho’s and 4/0s, about twenty inch rims and all-nighters; if the thought of one more Jay-to-the-izzo causes you more pain than fingernails scratching mercilessly on the chalkboard then Somewhere South of Somalia is for you.

The timing of this review is impeccable. I recently sat on a panel at an Urban Music conference where I addressed the situation of originality, or rather, the lack of it in much of today’s urban music.  Somewhere South of Somalia is as original as they come, written on location in Kenya and Tanzania, it is an adventurers diary, a hip hop recollection of one man’s soul-searching escape to the east coast of Africa. Ithaka Darin Pappas is a visual artist and a writer. He is also a superb storyteller who explores the sometimes forgotten topic of escapism.

The album plays out like a hip hop adventure journal. Somewhere South of Somalia brings us stories of tribal folklore, urban dangers, epidemics, and voodoo. It recalls life threatening experiences and human tragedy. It is funny; it is serious and at times wildly erotic.

There are nineteen tracks of songs and interludes on this very unique offering. Though written on location in East Africa, followed by a stay in Lisbon, Portugal, Somewhere South of Somalia was recorded in Los Angeles with producer-engineer, Conley “Conman” Abrams III (Tupac, Snoop Dogg, Queen Latifa, Heavy D, etc.). Ithaka’s distinctive laid-back but powerful rap style is complimented by first class original beats and vocal arrangements.

The overall production quality is first rate. It is obvious that a great deal of thought went into the production of each track. Almost as adventurous as the album’s material itself, Somewhere South of Somalia transports you from rap to spoken word, to trip-hop, all seamlessly done lending a true sense of discovery.

Rana Linda is a story of a foreign war correspondent originally from Colorado who had been covering events in Rwanda and now struggles with the realities of difficult choices. Ugly American tells of a wealthy business who moves to the Kenyan Coast, destroys forests, sexually abuses his maid and kills endangered species for fun.

Black Rock is a song based on Tanzanian tribal tradition of a black stone reported to save lives of those bitten by venomous snakes. The catchy chorus is sung by tribal children and backed by a thick base of tribal hip-hop rhythm.

Lapis Lazuli & Mother of Pearl is a spoken word proclamation of love with a melodically sung hook-line by IZREAL (from the song Rana Linda) and woven throughout by a beautifully muted trumpet and jazz-like beats. The song adds to the diversity and richness of the album. Very well done.

Upendo is eight minutes and twenty-six seconds of superb and outrageously erotic, trip-hop. “Mr. Lapis Lazuli” receiving a language lesson from “Mother of Pearl” (50 ways to say I LOVE YOU in Swahili). For sheer mood enhancing power, Upendo stands tall in the company of Enigma’s “Principles of Lust” (MCMXC a.D.) and Lonnie Liston Smith’s “Desert Nights” from his hallmark Expansions album. I would buy Somewhere South of Somalia for this album alone.

Exploring the outskirts of Nairobi’s notorious River Road, Ithaka relates a tale of adventure-turned nightmare involving pimps, drug dealers and knife-wielding gangs. It ends with Ithaka sprinting for his life.

Mwajuma, tells the story of an unlikely friendship between a wandering nomad, Ithaka, and a domestic servant to Nairobi’s elite. The story unfolds with a light-hearted meeting to Ithaka’s discovery that his new friend has tested HIV positive. Her husband is already dead and she ponders about the future of her children while still showing great concern for Ithaka’s well-being. Cynthia Denise Farmer sings the moving gospel chorus, building to a full choir ending. The song is a powerful reminder of the AIDS epidemic that is devastating much of Africa today.

Ithaka’s curiosity of places and people is revealed wholeheartedly in Somewhere South of Somalia. His travels have taken him to Europe, Africa and the South Pacific. While in Lisbon, Portugal, a brief stint as a radio host landed him a record deal with a local subsidiary of EMI. In 1998, he released the e.p. ESCAPE (Nortesul/EMI Portugal) which featured a remake of his hip hop dance track “Escape From the City of Angels”off of his first album. The song earned Ithaka the 1998 SCYPE AWARD (European Radio Listener’s Choice Award). Note the song's original version appeared in the soundtrack of Columbia Films’s “The Replacement Killers starring Mira Sorvino and Chow Yun Fat directed by Antoine Fuqua.

Somewhere South of Somalia is a continuation of Ithaka’s philosophy: live it, write it, rap about it. It is an excellent hip hop album as well as a true collector’s offering. Now I can finish right where I began: Run, don’t walk, and buy this CD! Don’t miss out on one of the most original hip hop releases of the year!”

Review by Jack Baer 

Lapis Lazuli & Mother of Pearl (official video)

Ithaka on the microphone

Ithaka's New Album, "SOMEWHERE SOUTH OF SOMALIA" (2001)

Somewhere South Of Somalia

There are many things one could criticize about hip hop. And what to one is worth of criticism is what the other actually appreciates. So when we write here, that hip hop is lacking concepts that run through the whole album, that are keeping an album together and make it distinguishable as such, then others will disagree and say, they just want a couple of tracks that keep their head nodding. And when we state that hip hop has the potential to reach a lot of people on deep and important levels, then other people will go, that hip hop is coming from the streets and should be made for the streets, and a deeper meaning would neatly fit somewhere dark, and somewhere where we usually sit on.

Whatever the case, Ithaka was not content with just putting a couple of tracks together, put 'em on a disc, call it an album and call it a day. When he was travelling Kenya and Tanzania, it inspired him. Inspired him to write about escapism, write about what he saw in those place, with his eyes, but also what his soul saw in the presence of other people's experiences, lives and struggles. Or how he calls it: "live it, write about it, rap about it". Hence this is one of the cases where a rap record is using its potential; talking to people and to bring a story across, easier and better, than any other genre of music is able to. And hence "Somewhere South Of Somalia" is deserving our props, as the courageous record it is, that's dwelling into the depth of something, that comes as close to travel journal as it can get.

And for this project, Ithaka teamed up with producer Conley 'Conman' Abrams, who's responsible for all the beats that back Ithaka up, who in his travels takes us into the trapped lands of tribal folklore, elitists foreigners or epidemics, collecting them in a musical ethnographic report. That starts out with Ithaka going into areas where the question is a unbelieving "So You're Going There?" commenting his plans. The reason why it is necessary to step out the regular shackles of society is expressed on"What U Gotta Do", before the physical travel to Africa is just as much a mental and psychical adaptation, what is dizzyingly shown by "My Mind & My Body". With "Snakes In The Rafter" the finish line of the first leg is reached, with us then meeting up with "Rana Linda (I Can Make A Difference)" who is a war photographer. This track features Izrael, of Cell-mob, who's handling the sung chorus. "Ugly American" is the next meeting with someone, this track portraying one of the still imperialistic thinking people, taking away all what's still good, untouched an innocent in this area. However, things catch up to him, what you can hear on "Dear Hillary". More anthropological topics are discussed on "Black Rock", before"Lapis Lazuli" is kept spoken word, with Izrael returning for the chorus.

Moving on to the tribal religions, "Visit With Nagawa" is once more having us meet a native, this time a suspect person that knows about spells. Entering a language course, "Upendo" is having us listen to Swahili, with Cassande Luchembe whispering the words in our excited ears. Then the streets are explored on "River Road", as we hear that some of the unwanted adventures can be rather similar there to here. Keeping the story progressing, "Nawaga's Revenge" is talking about the symptoms of Malaria. The last person we then meet is "Nwajuma", before our mind is again drifting off into "My Mind & My Body Reprise", as it's trying to take in, process and understand all what was experienced on this album.

With us now knowing what travel we are accompanying, it's interesting what kind of beats are coming along too. They are often on some unlocated style, that is keeping things in vibes of years ago. That can then sound 'heard before' like on "Dugout Canoe", or rather progressive like "Visit With Nagawa". It's also having some elements, that remind us of world music, of reggae, of Caribbean sounds, of African styles. Hence we are needing a decent amount of tolerance to get with it.

What then makes it necessary to talk about the album in a more regular kind of way: this album is on the beat tip not the strongest, and lyrically, the nomadic wanderer Ithaka (aka visual artist and writer Ithaka Darin Pappas) is not the most skilled as well, as much of his eloquence is getting lost, with the story being forced into rhyming patterns. But that's merely unfortunate, as the goal of this record can never be to reach an audience that just wants a good time pumping something to bob the head, or keeping the music low like in an elevator. That'd be unfair to the record, and that needs to taken into consideration. Hence what makes this record good is the patience and respect for a misunderstood continent, that's telling the story, and that is making this album a narrated book. Hence this gets a lot of respect from our side, a lot of props for the willingness to do something hard and exhausting, that will never get as much acclaim as it actually deserves.

http://www.urbansmarts.com/reviews/albums/ithaka.htm

Ithaka: SOMEWHERE SOUTH OF SOMALIA

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Ithaka is a hip hop adventurer. Somewhere South Of Somalia is one of the most original hip hop releases ever." -- bigbaer.com 11/2001

"Run, don't walk, and buy this CD Don't miss one of the most original hiphop releases of the year" -- Jack Baer 11/19/2001

About the Artist

Although originally from the United States, Ithaka began his recording career in Lisbon, Portugal where he lived for several years. Regarded as one of the most influential 'Portuguese' artists of the 1990's*, his first two albums, FLOWERS AND THE COLOR OF PAINT(1995) and STELLAFLY(1997), were nominated for a total of nine BLITZ PREMIOS (Portuguese Grammy's) and received numerous other awards.

The offspring of a Greek father from the Bronx and a mix-blooded mother from Chattanooga, ITHAKA's life has been one of contrasts since day one. Spawned in the cultural crossbreeding grounds of Southern California, ITHAKA (aka: Ithaka Darin Pappas) grew up with one foot in the street and the other in the sea. Discovering both photography and surfing at the age of twelve, he spent his teen years ditching school to either surf or take photos, constantly listening to both rap and hard rock.

ITHAKA's curiosity of places and people (combined with early ability as a photographer) motivated him to begin traveling at a young age. After several visits to Europe and Africa and a major excursion to the South Pacific, Ithaka found himself in Lisbon, Portugal where a brief stint as a radio host led to a record deal on a local subsidiary of EMI. His original, 'nomadic wanderer' school of lyricism and laid-back narrative rap style soon brought him both praise from the critics and a solid fan base.

In 1998, he released the ep, 'ESCAPE'(Nortesul-EMI/Portugal) which featured a remake of his hip-hop dance track 'ESCAPE FROM THE CITY OF ANGELS' from the first album. The song earned Ithaka a SCYPE AWARD(European Radio Listeners Choice Award) and later appeared in the sound track of Columbia Film's THE REPLACEMENT KILLERS starring Mira Sorvino and Chow Yung Fat. Soon after the single's release, Ithaka assembled a high-spirited team of professionals and crusaded on an ambitious concert season, including the prestigious PRINTEMPS DE BOURGES FESTIVAL in France and the World's EXPO '98 in Lisbon. Shows consisted of a five-piece band, synthesized sequences, a female vocalist, a performance artist, slide and film projections and spoken-word interludes. Audiences ranged from 100 to 10,000 people.

http://www.amazon.com/Somewhere-South-Somalia-Ithaka/dp/B00005UDIK

Somewhere over the.......

By octavio brown on August 6, 2002

Format: Audio CD

This is unusual territory for a rap record. It's definitely hiphop but not restricted by trying just to work only within
those confines. The beats are phat. The lyrics meaningful.
Ithaka has a great voice and his use of female vocalists
add a nice melodic but not formula flavor. Highly recommended.

Ithaka's rap is touching!

By Ayako Matsuda on September 5, 2007

Format: Audio CD

This is a really good Album. His music has diffrent elements like rock, jazz and some ethnic sound.
That's why I like it. My all time favorite is Lapis Lazuli. It's a beautiful song.
Others like River Road have some serious stories.
I Like It!!

LAPIS LAZULI

By Andreia Pires on August 24, 2002

Format: Audio CD

Ithaka is a good story teller and has a really nice voice,
reminds me a little of Tupac. For this album he actually
went to deep Africa for inspiration.
I've never heard of anyone doing anything like that before.
This record will expand
your mind of what you think modern day Africa is all about.
This is a very full album, it's actually more like a movie.
Reoccuring charcters appear and the songs all line up like
chapters in an adventure novel. The song Lapis Lazuli is
a true classic, I can't believe it isn't all over MTV.

http://www.amazon.com/Somewhere-South-Somalia-Ithaka/dp/B00005UDIK

Ithaka - Somewhere South Of Somalia

Contemporary artist, poet and hip hop vocalist 

Ithaka in East Africa during inspirational trip

 for his third album, Somewhere South Of Somaila

 (released 2001).

--------------------------------------------

In 1998, after over six years in Portugal, Ithaka returned back to California where he recorded his third album called Somewhere South Of Somalia with producer Conley Abrams III. The lyrics from this album were written on a two month journey into East Africa.^[3]