Photo by: Annemone
The members of Irreversible Entanglements came together in 2015 at a Musicians Against Police Brutality event in Brooklyn. While a decade has passed, they’ve lost none of the social and musical passion and commitment that first united them and was unleashed on their 2020 debut album Who Sent You? Now signed to the Impulse! label, the quintet has released the aptly titled Future Present Past, its fifth recording and second for the imprint that was home to innovators such as John Coltrane and Archie Shepp. From the opening track “Juntos Vencemos” (Together We’ll Win), the group displays a sense of hopeful urgency that echoes throughout the album. Trumpeter Aquile Navarro and saxophonist Keir Neuringer sound an alarm that’s picked up on by Tcheser Holmes’ tense cymbals and kick drum and underlined by bassist Luke Steward. Vocal harmonies by poet/vocalists Camae Ayewa (a.k.a. Moor Mother) and guest Helado Negro (“Black Ice,” or Roberto Carlos Lange) are equally intense. Organically blending hip-hop and jazz influences, Irreversible Entanglements is very much of its time, but also harks back sonically and spiritually to the socially concerned music of the ’60s and ’70s. The same could be said of the band’s mission, which is reflected in a line from a press release: “The result is a call to action by the band, who recognize that no one is coming to save us; we must look after each other.” That message has grown exponentially in the decade since their inception.
