For ages, these two have been effortlessly immersing themselves in the multicoloured waters of world jazz. These two big names are known for their open-mindedness, their finesse in the art of fusion, and here they join forces. SulaMadiana shows off the French percussionist Mino Cinelu and the Norwegian trumpeter Nils Petter Molvær in their true multi-instrumentalist forms. There’s percussion and trumpet of course. But we also find acoustic and electric guitars, electronic sounds and vocals punctuating this summit meeting that crosses continents (America, Africa, Europe) and eras. Created between Oslo and Brooklyn, the album mixes acoustic and electronic to give the feel of a self-portrait. The essential ports of call made by Mino Cinelu in the last century at Miles Davis and Weather Report have left their mark and they can be heard here and there. The two musicians find a common ground of understanding and communication never seen before in their vast respective careers. The frenetic Cinelu has not lost any of his superb sound and Molvær knows how to play with this power by taming it but never anaesthetising it, like in the captivating Theories of Dreaming and Rose of Jericho. At the heart of SulaMadiana, the tandem has slipped in three beautiful tributes to three recently deceased giants: saxophonist Manu Dibango (SulaMadiana) and drummers Tony Allen (Song for Julle) and Jimmy Cobb (Tambou Madiana). A fluctuating and crazy record that lives fusion to the full and brilliantly plays with the fake antagonism between vigorous percussion and a gliding trumpet. © Marc Zisman/Qobuz