KOMPA! MAGAZINE

[kompamagazine]

ZEKLE is given credit by many for starting the "NEW GENERATION" movement that brought so many bands on the HMI scene. Today, in the midst of their continuing comeback, JOEL and MUSHY Widmaier answer KOMPA MAGAZINE's questions about this icon group beloved by many.
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1) First and foremost, why..why..why..why do you leave a bunch of fans that you had captured with the whole ZEKLE adventure hanging for so many years before resurfacing on the scene again. Please understand this is coming from a "fanatic malade" huge fanatic of ZEKLE. WE (Including myself), have every right to be angry. What is your explanation?

JOEL/MUSHI: First thank you for your interest in the band. Second, the band at the time at the end of 85 was composed of young musicians that were their own producers because of the character of the music produced. The low record sales due to lack of promotions and distributions did not help us come out of the ditch we put ourselves in. This ditch was what you like Zekle for; great record production, recording, live concert out of the ordinary etc... all that made the band what it is and represents now.

2) If you had to do it all over again, would you have given up on the group, or would you have stayed away from the scene for so many years?

JOEL/MUSHI: Well you can not force things to happen, sometimes you have to go with the flow. Now we are back and to tell you the truth, I rather stay with a good souvenir than fall in the hole.

3) What are your "REAL" plans with ZEKLE right now as we speak. Is this a "TEASE", then you disappear again for many years, like you've done before, or are you staying on the scene "FOR REAL" this time?

Joel/Mushy: We are trying to get back on the scene and still in the same concert like band circuit, not "bal". We have another album in the making and hope to be out by the end of this year.

4) How did you guys get ZEKLE the group together at the very beginning? Give us the lowdown on how the group got together?

JOEL/MUSHY: After working on a record project for Jean Claude Verdier we realized that all of us had something in common. This drive of making another kind of music. And after the project with JCverdier and Jimmy Mourra under already the ZEKLE name, we decided to keep it that way and build from there. At the time the main core was and is still more or less the same with Raoul Denis, Ralph Boncy, Joel Widmaier, Claude Marcelin, Mushy Widmaier, Joe Charles(that we met in NY and became an integral part of it), Arius Joseph.




5) Did you guys plan it that way in terms of the style of music you were going to make/compose? It certainly did NOT sound like anything that was out there on the Haitian music scene.

JOEL/MUSHY: Music is a reflection of a society. And with the changing time needed the country needed some change in the music too as it always happens in any society. When the music changes, the state structure changes too. So at the time, being young and wanting to change things around, we took music as a revolutionnary channel to convey those changes. The style itself came from the musicians background of Classical/Jazz and fusion/French songs to brazilian/Kompa music/contemporary etc...and everything that the radios in haiti were playing on the air.

6) At the beginning of the ZEKLE adventure, did you guys realize what you were going to mean to Haitian music, and the new generation in general, in terms of the style of music?

JOEL/MUSHY: NOT AT ALL

7) Was there an EXPERIENCE, a concert, or a particular event or date that made you guys realize FOR THE FIRST TIME that "WOW....This ZEKLE thing is getting big/serious"?

JOEL/MUSHY: The first 2 concerts in MAY 1984 at the REX theater and out of that second album we had 4 number one hits from the SE OU MEN'M Album, and later being licensed by Warner WEA France.

We understand that you got a lot of resistance in terms of the style of music from compas purists, who did NOT want any changes to the hardcore COMPAS DIRECT. Tell us about that.

JOEL/MUSHY: The Big problem of resistance is a problem of petitesse, because being reluctent to any change is first a negative attitude. Second we were not in competition with any band. We were not there to take there dough (money), since the objectives were different. On one end the "Bal " scene and the other end the "Concert " Scene. And it is time for the people to understand the plurality of culture, and that any kind of music made by a haitian is haitian music regardless of if it's classical, jazz, pop, rap, raga, rock, etc...etc... they are all part of our Opera.




9) A quick PERSONAL OPINION of the following ZEKLE albums. We want the POSITIVE and the NEGATIVE on "EACH" one of the albums below.

A) REPON'N MWEN/CE OU MIN'M
Positive = Amazed about the fact that this music was well accepted by the young crowd we aimed at.
Negative= Not a great distribution / did not meet our financial expectations.

B) "YON'N" (The album featuring Jimmy Moura)...THE E.P
Positive = The Starting point of Zekle
Negative = Lack of focus in the production due to the fact that we were still searching for that path.

C) STOP
Positive = quintessence, culmination of the Zekle style
Negative = Still lack of returs and distribution

D) SAN MELE/ADJYE
Positive = Another implementation of style another approach toward World beat ,Jazz and Roots
Negative = Too Eclectic for the Market, lack of focus in the styles of the different songs in search of a new sound again.

10) Should we consider the SHAP albums 1 & 2 as part of ZEKLE's catalog? ZEKLE had some pretty good songs on those tracks such as "Chante Lanmou" and "Encore, Encore", among others.

JOEL/MUSHY: Yes they are indeed because "Shap" was mostly composed of Zekle musicians.

11) As a ZEKLE fanatic malade, I am going to be blunt, and I will see if you agree with me or not. The last ZEKLE cd "ADJYE" (San Mele), I personally said that "YOU SOLD OUT", because even though it had "some" signature ZEKLE song/styles on it, the majority of the CD was a totally different flavor and vibe. It felt like you guys wanted to hop on the world beat "FAD"/TREND that was happening at the time. You probably had a few ZEKLE fans scratching their heads with that move. AGREE or DISAGREE?

JOEL/MUSHY: For the reluctant people against change, it was hard for them to agree with the eclectism of the album. For those who understood that music is changing it was perfectly OK for some of Zekle's songs to go with the trend of time which was world beat. So we do agree that they were scratching their heads.

12) IN YOUR OPINION, which song is ZEKLE's biggest "HIT"? Why?

JOEL/MUSHY: Don't know ? Can't tell ? Hard to tell

13) Do you think you get "proper" credit from fans and other musicians for basically starting the "NEW GENERATION" movement? Some people don't know that you set the way for groups such as SKANDAL, PHANTOMS, ZIN, SAKAJ, in terms of the movement.

JOEL/MUSHY: Well the people that are really interested give credit where credit is due.




14) Do you think you guys were too far ahead of your time, and do you wish ZEKLE had reached its peak many more years LATER than when it actually happened?

JOEL/MUSHY: The critics say so. But we did not want it to happen later but at the time it was happening.

15) I, as a ZEKLE fan, have heard stories out there that you guys were young, were the partying type, and basically did NOT know how to handle the success/popularity that the band had. In other words, you guys did not take it seriously, kind of like, you were living the ROCK N' ROLL lifestyle...(the good old days) with the ladies, the drugs, the whole nine yards. TRUE or FALSE?

JOEL/MUSHY: So false. For your information none of the band members drink Alcohol neither were doing any drugs at the time, Light or Hard. This was not the motto. But the music was more important than anything else. As far as the women and the rest, people talk and make up stories. They certainly had mistaken us for another band.

16) Can you tell us THE DAY, and tell us THE MOOD, when you guys decided that ZEKLE had to stop, break up, or take a break, whichever one you feel is more appropriate. Make us ZEKLE fans live the moment.

JOEL/MUSHY: It was really hard to do it, but with no money you can not survive with a 15 people organization, have a bank loan and not getting any income from LP sales and Live performances in return.




17) Are you guys happy with the direction that our music has taken these days? Are we on our way to getting our fair share of the WORLD BEAT pie, or are we still far far away?

JOEL/MUSHY: Certain genres are far, others are close. A Lot of work and dedication is needed to get a fair share of the world beat pie, which is becoming smaller and harder to do as far as production is concerned. The competition is hard. A better understanding of the International Market and the music being played in that category need to be assessed.

1 Any final words for now?

JOEL/MUSHY: We would like to thanks all the fans out there that support our quest for a better music that could crossover.

KM!

(Conducted by PATRICK DESVARIEUX for Kompa Magazine)
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phpbb:echo dicks;

[dine11]

Wow Belle entrevue mwen apprann anpil bagay de Zèklè Mèsi Pat Joel et Mushy. Pat ou bliyé mandé si tour ke Zèklè te komansé ap kontinué paske mwen bezwen konnin si yon jou yap vini montréal.
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Haitienne, Grenadière et Apache pour la vie

[yef]

Thanks Pat, you're the man!!!!!!!! I look forward to see Zekle play live more in the ny/nj area! May I suggest a tour with Mizik Mizik???
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"I think I have managed to pay respect to some of my childhood heroes but my most important work is always ahead of me."

-Fabrice Rouzier

[BABYFACE]

Thank you Pat. Very good interview.
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HARMONIKER FOR LIFE

[SIROMYEL]

Great interview Pat.

Damn... I was like one or two wehn zekle first came out...

gotta check out some of these albums.
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A man who has taken possession of his own mind may take possession of anything else to which he is justly entitled_ Carnegie

[Raymi]

Great interview Pat. Very thourough and insightful.

Thanks

Much love
Raymi
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Some men see things as they are and ask why?
I dream of things that never were, and ask why not? RFK.

[bamban]

GREAT interview, thank you so much Pat

[LeMoMo]

Quote:

We understand that you got a lot of resistance in terms of the style of music from compas purists, who did NOT want any changes to the hardcore COMPAS DIRECT. Tell us about that. JOEL/MUSHY: The Big problem of resistance is a problem of petitesse, because being reluctent to any change is first a negative attitude. Second we were not in competition with any band. We were not there to take there dough (money), since the objectives were different. On one end the "Bal " scene and the other end the "Concert " Scene. And it is time for the people to understand the plurality of culture, and that any kind of music made by a haitian is haitian music regardless of if it's classical, jazz, pop, rap, raga, rock, etc...etc... they are all part of our Opera.

What do you call Kompa Purist? I thought the so called Kompa purist were always Zekle/Caribbean Fans. From what I noticed the Kompa Purists were in full support at both shows here in NY. I thought that style they created was called Funky Kompa. Pat pale ave'm...

[kompamagazine]

LE MOMO

Pa fe sa brother.....If you are a fan of ZEKLE, you would know that a lot of the bands that played COMPAS DIRECT, did NOT like the fact that they (ZEKLE) were trying to CHANGE THE SOUND OF COMPAS DIRECT. Even people in the business (I was told by....) tried to boycott the group because they did not want the sound to change.

COMPAS PURISTS...Hardcore Compas....
MACHE BASS la 1/2 1/2 1/2...you know the drill MOMO.

KM!
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phpbb:echo dicks;

[LeMoMo]

So we are talking about band members and industry insiders. We usually refer to kompa purists here as the fans of Kompa direct ki pa vle tande pale de Techno Kompa as Manmzel (hehehe) used to do it. You remember that band call Manmzel.
I think of myself as a Kompa Purist...

Magnum suffered that situation and still ap monte le ciel pa do pou ca.