Words by Art Jefferson
Images by Diane Sagnier and courtesy of L.A. Salami
Often times names such as Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen are mentioned when discussing some of the most impactful wordsmiths of music. However Lookman Adekunle Salami can be considered as one of our modern marvels whose immaculate songwriting and lyricism puts him on par with many of the greats of the art form. Known to many as L.A. Salami, the London singer, poet, musician and overall multi-disciplined creative erases any sonic boundaries or limitations, allowing himself the freedom to constantly explore and foster a rich carnival of sounds.
With a portion of his life having been spent moving around between various places, L.A. Salami is a bluesman of sorts whose thought-provoking lyrics, stacked with a tongue-in-cheek wit is full of sociological commentary, personal reflection and vivid, imaginative storytelling. And whilst he is quite the aficionado on the guitar, it was at the age of 21 that he actually received one. Eventually an opportunity would lead him to support Lianne La Havas on her 2012 tour. That same year he released the singles ‘Jianni’s From Australia (She’ll Get By Fine)’ and the ‘The Scene’. In 2013 the iconic luxury brand Burberry tapped Salami for their Acoustic series with the charismatic singer dropping his brilliant record Another Shade of Blue via Camouflage Recordings shortly after. Releasing The Prelude EP in 2014, his 2016 debut LP Dancing With Bad Grammar, on the Sunday Best imprint, was a stellar piece of work embodying the sounds of not only folk but blues rock, psychedelic disco and more. L.A. Salami’s 2018 sophomore album The City of Bootmakers was a musical wonderland which included elements of punk, bluegrass, breezy rock and even sprinkles of pop. His dazzling songwriting was immediately reeling, with the record being one fearless and gratifying journey.
L.A. Salami’s latest album The Cause of Doubt & a Reason to Have Faith finds the Londoner tapping into another love of his, Hip-Hop. Whilst there are still aspects of his signature folk sound, Salami’s expansion of baroque pop and soul makes the LP yet again a carousel of musical goodness and a fresh look into his wide-ranging artistry.
You’ve once said in an interview that your consider yourself more emotional than political. Yet I would say that tracks such as ‘Terrorism (The ISIS Cris) or ‘Things Ain’t Changed’ from your new album is a great piece of commentary that speaks to the current climate not only socially buy politically. Is there a fine line between the emotional aspect and that political awareness when writing some of those kinds of tracks?
L.A. Salami – Maybe, depending on your perspective. But with those songs you mentioned, it’s more feeling a certain way about complicated ideas or situations, and then expressing them in a controlled emotional way- i.e. a song. I don’t ever think of them as political subjects. I’m not even sure what a political song is to be honest. I don’t think I’ve ever knowingly listened to one.
Your latest record The Cause of Doubt & Reason to Have Faith is a gorgeous musical collage. Having listened to your work harking back to your debut, there has always felt like a sense of creative freedom with your records. How was the process working on the new album considering you’ve even added elements of Hip-Hop in it?
L.A. Salami – It was all a very organic expressive process from my perspective; these are sounds I’ve always been exploring with, and as I was recording this new record I was thinking it would just be an EP, so I wasn’t really thinking how it would be received album wise. The Hip-Hop elements were always around – ‘The City Nowadays’ on the first record was me dipping my toe in, and I got the impression people were disappointed that I didn’t just dive right in at the time, so I gathered it would be a direction that I could take people along with me on. I use it in the same way I use folk music and rock and roll and neo-soul, etc. They’re just tools of expression.
With the song ‘When You Play God (The 2018 Copyright Blues), not only do you address certain people in power trying to play the position of God but you also touch on the whirlwind of information, sometimes misinformation, and what you deem as ‘the talk of revolution between the memes and noise pollution.” This track is so fitting for the present. What is your take on the current protests over the past couple months and do you feel that these specific movements have cut through the noise to make a giant progressive leap forward?
L.A. Salami – Personally, I think the intentions behind the protests have already been drowned out by the more ridiculously simplistic Marxist fuelled stupidity of modern idealogical anarchists who want to tear down a system they don’t really understand rather than repairing and fortifying a system that is the right size for the world but has wide gaping holes in it. What should be a concentration on pragmatic and realistic solutions to systemic problems that are most definitely a symptom the class structure of the economic world have turned into low grade conversations about statues and masochistic cancel culture – Virtue signalling by institutions who propagate the very systemic problems that the people complaining about the statues and old TV shows work for, claim to be against, but fall for every single time. They’re being patted on the head and being shown a black box on Instagram and that’s all it takes to appease them. But these are the same people who get offended by any thought that is different from their own, which makes the very conversations that we need to have in order to change anything that much more difficult.
In the opening line of ‘The Talis-man on the Age of Glass (Redux)’, you essentially mention how ideals fade away as well as fears straying the older you get. Around what point in your life did you begin to let certain fears of constraints go and how has that manifested in your musical journey from the beginning to now?
L.A. Salami – I’m always trying to, have yet to succeed. This comes through in the music by virtue of that being the process of living itself. In the process of trying not to come undone, you learn how to stay together I suppose.
Some would say that during chaotic times an artist is one of the most important people who can touch, inform, move or simply help to heal the general community. What’s your take and also do we put too much pressure on artists to fill those large responsibilities?
L.A. Salami – I don’t think artists should have or feel any responsibility to inform – most don’t know what they’re talking about anyway, and believing that they do has sort of led to a world where Donald Trump is president. Artists should just express themselves and people should just seek them out for everyday spiritual healing if the art speaks to them. I don’t know, ask me another day and I may have another answer for you.
I actually saw you a couple years back attending Somerset House’s System: Sound Series & Future Sounds event. It was the night Caya Soundsystem played. You have always had a diverse musical palette. What sounds and artists are you currently listening to at the moment?
L.A. Salami – Conway The Machine is my go to at the moment, he eclipses all other music to me at the moment, I’m having music amnesia right now trying to think of anyone else other than him. His music (along with the rest of Griselda) gets me excited. Also loving the new Becca Mancari album.
How did you spend those days during lockdown over the past few months and what affect did it have on you creatively?
L.A. Salami – Playing poker and losing…Lockdown had absolutely no affect on my creativity.
Due to the pandemic, some venues have decided to push dates back to 2021 whilst others have been toying with the idea of outside shows. How do you foresee the near future of live music and do you think the outcome, once venues properly re-open, will be better than ever considering peoples’ need for that social interaction again?
L.A. Salami – I think outside drive in gigs will become more of a thing – Or secret guerilla shows in the same vein as these secret raves that have been popping up all over the place!
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