Jairus Sharif :: Find energy in exploration

“I’m enthusiastic about so-called distortion, noise, blur, etc. and began to find energy in the exploration of signal-to-noise ratios and what true clarity of signal means to me. Accuracy, as I had previously understood it, is of little concern to me, and I’ve found that clarity in spirit has a high level of distortion as one of its most desirable traits.” ~Jairus Sharif

Lessons are still unfolding as a solitary practice

Jairus Sharif is an experimental jazz musician from Calgary, Canada. He started in music as a hip-hop turntablist and DJ, and later played in garage rock and blues bands before discovering avant-garde jazz through samples on some of his favorite early hip-hop records. After being exposed to the music of South African saxophonist Dudu Pukwana, he bought an alto saxophone and began to teach himself the instrument. He released the Q4DB (Quest 4 Deep Breath) series of EPs, followed up with the EP Mega Optics in 2021, before releasing his full-length debut Water & Tools 2022. Basis Of Unity, is the follow-up album. It’s a raw and noisy DIY spiritual jazz album in an early 90s hip-hop production.

 

Jairus Sharif :: I began making recordings for Basis Of Unity during a time of seemingly inconsolable grief. I wanted to make music that I felt would resonate with the audience that enjoyed my previous album, but approaching from that perspective proved fruitless and disheartening. I started recording music as a form of relief through meditation, with improvisation sessions sometimes lasting hours. Through that process the recordings heard on the Basis Of Unity began to take shape. Part of my practice involved listening to unmixed tracks within days of their recording, and in that space I began to notice real relief that I’d not yet experienced. I was listening to myself search, and it was easier to meet the searcher with new findings.

Igloo :: If I would call your music spiritual jazz in a 90s hip-hop production, would that make sense to you?

Jairus Sharif :: Yeah, I can get with that recipe, maybe throw in a little skateboarding, and some self-determined DIY ethics and that’s a good stew for me. You were the first person to ever request an interview when I started this journey and like I said back then; I like to do what I want to do, and this project has been an excuse to do my best, and take care of the people I love, which now includes me.

You described the sound of your record as raw and noisy.

Jairus Sharif :: While creating the new pathways in my mind that led to where the summonings were recorded, I of course needed to create a sound that reflected the imagined environments. I found those areas full of static, unstable, and lacking in what I thought of as clear renderings. But luckily, I’m enthusiastic about so-called distortion, noise, blur, etc. and began to find energy in the exploration of signal-to-noise ratios and what true clarity of signal means to me. Accuracy, as I had previously understood it, is of little concern to me, and I’ve found that clarity in spirit has a high level of distortion as one of its most desirable traits.

Why do you still prefer working mainly solo?

Jairus Sharif :: A great man once told me “you gotta study ya​’ self too.” I do enjoy working with others, but this project is still about personal allowance and the lessons are still unfolding as a solitary practice. Being self-taught, it’s very interesting for me to explore creativity in any way I see it, at any given time, for any reason, for any length of time etc. So being able to do the work on my own is beneficial to the growth of my singular approach.

On We Be you work together with Malcolm Mooney from Can. How did you get to know him?

Jairus Sharif :: Malcolm was curated to do a performance in our hometown by our mutual friend, Matt  from Astral Swans, who also asked me to perform at the same event. I opened, so Malcolm watched the performance and invited me to sit in for him. Of course I said yes, and since then he’s been someone I’m happy to call a friend. I was fortunate to perform in his band, the 11th Planet, in 2024.

Photo credit: Graham Kennedy

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Basis Of Unity is available on Telephone Explosion. [Bandcamp]