After more than a decade of anticipation, the undisputed "Father of Ethio-jazz," Mulatu Astatke, has delivered a musical masterwork that defies his rumored "farewell tour" with the release of his first major studio album in ten years: "Mulatu Plays Mulatu." Far from a simple retrospective, this monumental new album is a powerful, big-band reimagining of his most vital compositions, a vibrant conversation between past and present that finds the 81-year-old innovator bridging continents, generations, and traditions by recording sessions between his longtime UK ensemble in London and cultural musicians from his Jazz Village club in Addis Ababa.

​Released through Strut Records, Mulatu Plays Mulatu is more than an album; it's a testament to the enduring vision of the genre's creator. The vibraphonist and composer has meticulously crafted new, elaborate arrangements of classic tracks from the late '60s and early '70s, expanding their textures and rhythmic complexity to create what critics are already calling some of the most definitive performances of his career.

​Key compositions, including the hauntingly familiar "Yekermo Sew," the celebratory "Kulun," and the mesmerizing "Netsanet," are reinvented as elegant, sprawling big-band pieces. "Yekermo Sew," popularized globally by the Jim Jarmusch film Broken Flowers, is stretched to almost double its original length, allowing for extended improvisations and a renewed sonic transparency.

​Fusing Ancient and Modern Sounds

​The album’s unique sound palette is achieved through a deliberate fusion of contemporary Western jazz instrumentation and an array of traditional Ethiopian instruments, including the:

• ​Krar (Lyre)

• ​Masenqo (One-string fiddle)

• ​Washint (Flute)

• ​Kebero (Drum)

• ​Begena (Ten-string harp, which memorably opens the album)

​This innovative layering—a hallmark of Ethio-jazz since Astatke first pioneered it—gives the record a sense of hypnotic depth. The double recording process, split between RAK Studios in London and sessions in Addis Ababa under producer Dexter Story, ensures the music feels both polished and deeply rooted.

​A Dedication to the Motherland

​In a statement about the album, Astatke explained the deep cultural significance of the project. "Ethio-jazz brings us together and makes us one," he said. "This album is the culmination of my work bringing this music to the world and pays respect to our unsung heroes, the original musical scientists in Ethiopia who gave us our cultural music.”

​With a musical career spanning over five decades, and despite coinciding with a major international farewell tour, Mulatu Plays Mulatu proves that the legendary artist still has boundless energy and new perspectives to share. The record is an invitation for fans, old and new, to experience the living, breathing evolution of the sound that Mulatu Astatke created.