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From the moment you hear the acoustic drum beat of the opening song, you’re anxious for more.
Kwedu, Victor Kunonga’s fourth studio album is a journey that takes the artist and listener to a time that was once consigned to some corner of oral history, only rarely if not conveniently acknowledged and often misunderstood.
The album is much like the others before it, heavily spiritual and filled with messages so deeply embedded in culture they almost redefine it with inspiration. Except a bit more.
Where Kunonga will never fall short of is in instrumental arrangement and he again outdoes himself with intricate layers of musical excellence palpable in their ability to move in many ways. The work is polemic against mediocrity.
The man has claps in there. Strong ones. But the uninitiated would never notice them. They are part of the sound and that for us, is what music simply begs for. The intercourse of instruments to form one.
Did we mention Norman Masamba’s omnipresent and haunting guitar? It is beautiful.
Kwedu feels intrinsically Zimbabwean but not so isolated so as to be lost to the rest of the African continent and the world at large. That is derived from the aforementioned quality.
From Kubuda Ura, the tone is set, perhaps a testament to the years of hard work it took to put this album together. It almost feels as if this was an album that Kunonga needed.
When he delves further into the deep Mbira-derived musical formations fused with strong guitar presence with the legendary Wilfred Mafrika also known as ‘Nyamasvisva’ of the Mbira Dzenharira and Mawungira eNharira fame on Cheuka, there is understanding.
He goes international when he gets Dora-Award winning Jamaican-Canadian dub poet D’Bi Young on Ruvengo. It has a discernible dub influence but, yet again, the strong Mbira-laced afro-beat elements keep it a Kunonga song.
Another of his collaborations is with South African jazz star Bheki Khoza Ikhotha Eyikhothayo. It is two styles blending so seamlessly that it seems as if they were destined to meet and on this consummate so perfectly what they give birth to is an expansion of musical heritage.
There is also a nice touch in the song Mhofu when he pays respect to the late Adam Chisvo who was part of his band Peace to the time of his death in 2011.
The musical journey is summarised in the last track on his album, also the title track, Kwedu. It’s not music. It’s spiritual. A cry to the forefathers in their wisdom to speak through him.
There are obviously a lot of things we like about this album. You do however feel that you need to get more of Victor Kunonga, the voice and front man. He so often disappears into the great music around him, but you can feel that when he comes out he will be a beastly. His voice has a gamut of emotions that inspire introspection.
On this album you will find a lot of fan favourites, especially for those who regular go to his shows.
These are our 3:
- Kwedu
- Kumagobo
- Mhofu
Kwedu is available on iTunes and CD Baby. Physical copies are available at Book Cafe in Harare and at his shows.
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