Effortlessly fusing psych-soul, gospel, trap and freak funk, Kenyan artist Kabeaushé delivers a masterclass in how to be unmissable. Prepare!
@kabeaushe once described their music as »the complete opposite« of the hardcore leftfield electronic sounds of their then labelmates on Nyege Nyege Tapes. And at the time that was true: the Kenyan polymath’s sound on their debut album The Coming of Gaze was fiercely and single-mindedly focused towards giddy pop rush, old school party hip hop upfulness, clean sounds, gentleness, bounciness, positivity and JOY. Now, though, the lines are not quite so clear. On their new material for Monkeytown, a little more rawness, weirdness and rave energy seems to have soaked in. This isn’t just an effect of being around Nyege Nyege peers, mind – partly it’s the experience of playing at eclectic festivals all over the world and being exposed to all kinds of radical music, but even more so, it’s the expression of Kabeaushé’s own wild performance energy shining through via their alter ego »the Shé«. Anyone who’s seen a Kabeaushé show will get it instantly. Their sets are far more than just performance, they’re a celebration, a communion, a party in which the audience gets what they give, and the Shé emerges. Kabeaushé / the Shé’s presence is angelic but also elemental, channeling modern pop energy but also something deep, ancient and profound. And it’s that which surges through HOLD ON TO DEER LIFE, THERE’S A BLCAK BOY BEHIND YOU! You can hear the drive and energy in every atom of the sound and lyrics of the record.
