Jakuta’s Dance, June 2026, 0n 577 Records:
Featured in The WIRE (UK), July 2026 issue.
4 Star review DOWNBEAT Magazine August, 2026
Joe Chambers – vibraphone, drum kit, assorted percussion
Kevin Diehl – Sensory Percussion drum it, bata drums & bata drum kit, marimba, cajon, conga, assorted percussion
Craig McIver – marimba, vibraphone, drum kit, glockenspiel, assorted percussion
Daniel Villarreal – drum kit, marimba, cajon, conga, assorted percussion
The boundary-defying percussion ensemble Onilu debuts on 577 Records with a work of striking scope, depth, and creative fire: Jakutá’s Dance. The group delivers a sonic vision that is at once elemental and exploratory—rooted in tradition yet unbound by it.
Founding members Kevin Diehl and Joe Chambers are joined by Craig McIver and Daniel Villarreal, forming a dynamic quartet whose collective experience spans generations and geographies. Together, they draw from an expansive array of percussion instruments—ranging from global drum traditions to vibraphone, marimba, piano, and electronics—creating a richly layered and immersive sound world.
The album’s title reflects its spiritual and cultural grounding. “Onilu,” from the Yoruba language, translates simply as “drummers,” while “Jakutá” refers to the deity of drums, music, dance, thunder, lightning, and fire. That elemental energy pulses through the music: at once ritualistic and spontaneous, meditative and explosive.
Each member brings a deep and distinct musical lineage to the ensemble. Diehl, a former student of the late free jazz pioneer Sunny Murray, bridges avant-jazz and Afro-Yoruban traditions through his work with Sonic Liberation Front and beyond. Chambers, a legendary figure whose career includes collaborations with icons such as McCoy Tyner and Wayne Shorter, continues his lifelong exploration of percussion’s tonal possibilities. McIver, a cornerstone of the Philadelphia jazz community and former member of Max Roach’s M’Boom, contributes a uniquely versatile voice shaped by decades of collaboration. Villarreal, known for his work across Chicago’s vibrant scene and beyond, infuses the group with rhythmic fluency drawn from psychedelic funk, Latin American folk traditions, and forward-thinking jazz.
Together, Onilu transcends the conventional definition of a percussion ensemble. Across Jakutá’s Dance, the group navigates a vast musical terrain where ancient traditions meet futuristic textures, where composition intertwines with improvisation, and where cultural histories converge into something wholly new.
With its expanded palette and fearless vision, Jakutá’s Dance affirms Onilu’s place at the forefront of contemporary experimental music—an ensemble not merely playing rhythms, but redefining what rhythm itself can contain.
All About Jazz praised the band for its “music of vibrant colors with a jazz sensibility at its heart,” while Magnet described the group as “lifetime students of the drums… making music that is complete and completing.” The Free Jazz Collective hailed the work as “emotionally open, sonically generous,” marking Onilu as a singular force in contemporary improvised music.
ONILU’s Jakutá’s Dance – Holocene Serene
Artist: Onilu
Album Title: Jakutá’s Dance
Landscapes
Jakutá’s Dance
Holocene Serene
Pope-A-Dope
Café Con Pan
Circles
Olókun Slumber
Ni tán (That’s It)
Jakutá’s Dance Credits
Joe Chambers: vibraphone, drum kit, assorted percussion
Kevin Diehl: Sensory Percussion drum kit, bata/drum kit mashup, cajon, quinto
Craig McIver: marimba, glockenspiel, drum kit, assorted percussion
Daniel Villarreal: primary drum kit, Sensory Percussion drum kit, cajon, assorted percussion, marimba
Recorded September 30, 2025 Rittenhouse Sound Works Philadelphia
The above steaming tracks are pre master tracks intend for private use.
BACKLINE INSTRUMENTS FOR PRESENTERS
(1) vibraphone, (1) marimba (1) drum kit w hardware (1) partial drum kit – kick, snare, floor tom (no cymbal hardware required for this partial)
Stereo DI
VIDEOS – for Jakutá’s Dance are currently in post production.
ONILU, The Debut Record, February 2025, eremite:
The self-titled debut album was recorded in January of 2023. It was released world-wide by the Eremite label on February 7, 2025. It featured Joe Chambers, Kevin Diehl and Chad Taylor.
a shared devotion to drumming as a cultural, spiritual and historical phenomenon. They wear that reverence; a house wide open to the sun and wind on a breezy spring day. – Bill Meyer, magnetmagazine.com
emotionally open, sonically generous, three masters of different generations celebrating a shared musical passion. – Stuart Broomer, freejazzblog.org
What a wonderfully uplifting, fresh and enjoyable recording this is. I’ve not come across anything quite like it. – Glenn Klimpton, klofmag.com