Brothers from Another Planet

For The East Bay Express by Rachel Swan
August 8, 2007

Probably the Bay Area's best example of jazz edging toward psychedelia, the Broun Fellinis were firm endorsers of the term "Afro-futurism" long before it became trendy. The group's saxophonist David Boyce — aka Black Edgar Kenyatta — created an alternate universe for the group to inhabit, both to tie the Fellinis' music back to his personal mythology (Boyce says he wanted to reconcile his 21st-century self with his 3rd-century self) and completely mystify the general public. "I developed this country called Boohaabia," explains the saxophonist, characterizing the place as "Moorish Spain before the Moors got kicked out, combined with any of the ancient dynasties of the first four pharaohs." With the help of Fellinis drummer Kevin Carnes (aka Professor Borris Karnaz) and bassist Kirk Peterson (aka the Redeemer), Boyce developed a whole Boohaabian lexicon, which added an extra dimension of funkiness to the group's music. Though Broun Fellinis only perform a few times a year these days (as opposed to fifteen times a month back in the '90s), their live show is still utterly compelling — a mix of sample-driven funk grooves, bobbling scraps of melody, and even the occasional spoken-word poem. Broun Fellinis play Jupiter in Berkeley on Saturday, August 11. The free show starts at 8 p.m.