If you like your roots reggae deep and spiritual then you gotta check out these two brothers from Ethiopia, The Nazarenes.

Their debut album ‘Orit’ which was released in 2001 by Insteel Sounds is a collection of fourteen raw unpredictable roots, deep and spiritual with sweet melodies that take you back to the golden age of the Congos, Meditations etc. Not only do Medhane Tewolde & Noah Isac Tewolde harmonize with professional ease throughout the album but they are also players of instruments.

The brothers also wrote, produced and mixed all the tracks on the album with additional players; Jesper Lundaahl on Trumpet. Roy Anderson on Trombone.

Stefan Sandberg on Saxophone and additional vocals from Samuel Tewolde on K derfelki.

The ‘Nazarenes’ are now based in Sweden and without a doubt they are a talented duo. Their follow up album ‘Songs Of Life’ (see review) is available from many outlets on the net, but ‘Orit’ is a lot harder to find, which is a great shame as everyone should hear this album. It’s a lesson in deep roots and I love it. Highly recommended.

My good friend 'idread' beat me to this review, however this release is such an exceptional one that I felt the need to write a few words. I concur with 'idread' that this is a deep and rootsy album, which takes the listener on a spiritual journey through the heritage of real roots reggae music. If this album had been produced during the golden age, it would be held as a classic, and rightly so. For some listeners it will not be as accessible as ‘Songs Of Life’ but for those who really know their reggae, this is a gem of an album.

Each song is outstanding in its own right but there are several tracks that surpass any superlative I can give them. The first, ‘Help’, opens with some thunderously low baritone chanting. This is a profound and haunting song, asking Jah for guidance and help, created in a true traditional roots style. This is followed by ‘Senkamat’ which is my personal favorite, a gentle, spiritually uplifting cut, truly reaching Irie Ites! Another insightful musical outing is ‘Langa’, again deeply spiritual, weighty and full of religious depths. Both ‘Senkamat’ and ‘Langa’ are sung in (I’m assuming here folks, because there are no sleeve notes) the ‘Tigrignia’ language. But whatever language they are sung in, this simply adds to the haunting, sacred and mystical sound that surrounds these tracks and the album as a whole. If you can find a copy of ‘Orit’ buy it, because roots music doesn’t come much better than this.

Review by 'idread' & 'JumpUp'

'Tigrinya (also spelt Tigrigna) is a Semitic language spoken by the Tigray-Tigrinya people in central Eritrea, where it is one of the main working languages (Eritrea does not have official languages), and in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia, where it also has official status, and among groups of emigrants from these regions, including some of the Beta Israel now living in Israel. Tigrinya should not be confused with the related Tigre language, which is spoken in a region in Eritrea to the west of the region where Tigrinya is spoken.'

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