POP Montréal | SAM.IITO, A Promising New Cycle

In the small, sparsely packed Rialto Hall on Thursday evening, SAM.IITO (Samito) introduced us to his new musical project, Des–Dobramento (deployment), whose main theme is shame.

For the Mozambican-born musician, who has lived in Montreal for almost two decades, this project is a return to his roots: after having worked extensively in the electro sphere, this African musician trained in jazz admitted in an interview that he also listens to a lot of soft music. So, he wanted to bring all these parts of himself together in a new musical adventure.

And the result on stage is very promising, if unfinished. SAM.IITO himself said as much at the start of the concert, and even asked the audience for feedback on how to improve. SAM.IITO really doesn’t do things the way most people do them, and that’s what makes him so endearing.

This sonic journey takes us into all kinds of musical textures, from extreme mellowness to dance party, with intriguing jazz harmonies, aided by saxophonist and keyboardist Alex Ambroise, drummer Salin Cheewapansri, violinist Elsasosa Jousse and bassist Milla Thyme, also on keyboards.

SAM.IITO sings, mostly in Portuguese, and we also play keyboards. Added to this assemblage are processed samples of choral singing, speeches and instruments played.

While some arrangements still need to be perfected, the overall experience is one of Samito’s most accomplished musical offerings. The fusion of his various musical heritages floats us in an emotional bubble. It’s at once learned and playful, lulling and challenging.

Des–dobramento is a work in progress, unfinished, but very interesting indeed. Let’s hope we’ll soon be able to witness the continuation of this embryonic project.