MOONLIGHT BENJAMIN: Wayo (ROCK,Blues): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

Traditional Haitian music, with its voodoo chants and bewitching drums, is much more than folklore: it carries the soul of a people, a heritage between the sacred and the everyday. Port-au-Prince-born singer and voodoo priestess Moonlight Benjamin embodies this duality, blending her Haitian roots with intense blues-rock energy. On her latest album, “Wayo”, she plunges us into a universe where every note is an invocation, a tribute to the forces that animate her history and that of her people.

“Wayo” is a burning incantation, a journey where Moonlight Benjamin's magnetic voice blends with the rhythms of raw, visceral rock. From the very first notes, the album takes us into a musical trance where each track sounds like a prayer ('Wayo', 'Haul Là Haut'), an invitation to explore the Haitian soul. Papa Legba, a tribute to the guardian of passages, leads the way in a mystical quest, transforming the album into an ode to resilience and tradition.

The guitars growl and blaze ('Ouvé Lespri', or the scorching 'Alé'), accompanied by percussion that transforms the music into a visceral, almost hypnotic experience (the very Gabrielian 'Limyé'). Moonlight doesn't just sing, she embodies each track like a modern-day priestess, drawing on her roots to reveal the full force of this heritage ('Pè') but also of love. The percussion, at times frenetic, beats like a burning heart, while the bass anchors the whole in a depth that seems to draw its source from the earth itself (the vibrant 'Freedom Fire').

Moonlight Benjamin creates a song of resistance, a tribute to tradition while looking to the future. His voice, mystical and anchored in a brutal reality ('Bafon', where the emotion is great), is a common thread that guides the listener through an interweaving of emotions (the formidable 'Pwenn Fè' soothingly concludes) and rich landscapes, celebrating a culture as timeless as it is intense. Each track is a confession, an immersion in a universe where modernity and memory come together in a unique and powerful work.

By blending the intensity of rock and the depth of blues with sounds imbued with voodoo spirituality, “Wayo” achieves a rare balance, in the tradition of artists who have made world music resonate with a wider audience, such as Peter Gabriel. Far from confining herself to one style, Moonlight Benjamin extends the boundaries of her musical universe to make it an almost universal experience, where every listener can be carried away, whether familiar with traditional music or a fan of rock or blues. With this album, she offers an authentic, vibrant and accessible work, which will touch those who seek in music an invitation to elsewhere, while remaining anchored in modernity. - Official website

MOONLIGHT BENJAMIN

WAYO

AUTRE LABEL

ROCK