Revisiting Fela's Power Show.

There's something about Fela's early 80s ouevre which had the gentle kick of the heydays, the mid-seventies.Power show, a 14 minute spool of soft-tempo melancholia attacks the circumstantial misuse of power, which, surprisingly, is characteristic of nigeria, nay africa.What is most innovative about this low-keyed dirge is Fela's recourse to the piano, which he had majored in at the Liverpool Trinity School where he trained as a musician. There were several short and intermittent solos of brassy key notes with a blast of reponse intiated by the horn section but later orchestrated by d maestro himself, all these being observed by the soft percussion and a mellow rhythm section.The vocals are employed earlier on with the adopted call and response reminiscent of Soul music. And about a third of the way down the track, the real music of organic instrumental dialogue begins till the track tampers down the crescendo.This for no apt and reason justifiable happens to be my personal favourite after d order of Trouble Sleep.The two songs are very social in their content and have charged itself with the responsibility of telling the story of the down-trodden, something a man from at least bourgeois origin tells most eloquently.

On a Certain Nigerian Movie

Now I believe that the Choc Boys have a shot at the forefront in Nigeria Arts and Music. I think they can be at the melding point of the renaissance, where popular music may transform into art, and their price will be higher regard in excess of what the reigning circus of entertainers and their presumably easy-going chieftain come away with. This is a relevant aside; let me return to the business of this piece, presumably the glorification of a good Nigerian movie.

The idea to market M.I’s sophomore as a movie was effective, especially in the early days when the blogosphere and social networks speculated that perhaps the fine hip-pop act was thinking of venturing into Nollywood. The Idea of the movie to the frame of the album is not entirely fitting, neither is it completely discordant. Three tracks allude to movie: Action Film, Wild Wild West and Epic, and these tracks in a light can be described as the strongest at different moods.

The Cover-image is excellent and brings to memory the first album’. Only that here MI is suited with a rather apt bow-tie and in his clutching the butt of a mic, with his left hand stylishly dipped into his pocket. The picture oozes of business, the business of musical mastery.

MI has morphed. He has become what he wanted to be. The classic rap maestro who lyrically experiments with rap in several musical formulae has succeeded at composing compound sounds which in good time will bear his insignia.

MI 2 works on several levels. It works as a leisure L.P, the type you listen to for the heck of hearing good sounds. Action Movie is perhaps the only club-banger or the song orchestrated to cater to dance. Brymo, the man with the honeyed husk of a voice, does his “thing” again, asserting that his excellent collaboration with Ice Prince on Oleku is not particularly a fluke or a lucky ride.

Slow Down is one of my personal favourite and MI is not without assistance in the vocals of another croning chap, Julius Caesar. The track is interestingly refreshing, it’s a booty song with a feel good twang, sort of like a love song miss road come jump on top bed.

Number One is a landmark hit, the first success of its kind, a fusion between highlife and rap. The track is awesome on both levels and entirely works. The lyrical arrangement is almost divine and MI was on top of it. Yes sir
Anybody and Nobody respectively recruiting Timaya and Tuface are not exceptional. They are just regular musical collaborations that will do their bit in entertaining, reigning and eventually fading. They may find themselves a place in the back corner of tracks reserved for old school, if they keep their airplay up.

Beef, MI’s retort to his beefers, itself a metaphor, is witty in the handling of material, does not take itself serious and delves the blow where it is most needed. Then Wild Wild West is a love song to the religio-ethnic war ravaged J-town, Jos. It is relevant in the concern of music and arts with the human condition brought about by either religious and political propanganda or both.
One Naira with Waje absolutely works in its uniqueness of an age old concern, love.
Craze is not a personal favourite, it is my least heard track.
Undisputed reiterates the essence of the entire LP, that MI’s glory is inimitable. And I agree.

Epic is reminiscent of gospel, the crooner, called Praise, handles his business in a John Legendish fashion and the track will be known for its autobiographical exposition.
Imperfect me is a musical tribute to imperfection and features close allies voicing what they don’t like about MI. This is MI selling his personality with his sophomore album, perhaps he is also reiterating that his art and his life is inseparable.
And of course, back to the beginning we have a choc boys anthem, with each lieutenant in the fold acoustically represented.
Indeed M.I has made a good album.

A man's thoughts and Mine.

A sixth studio album is no lean feat; it proves that whoever is on the other side of the speaker has consistency and substantial following as propellers. Well, Ginny as a lot more than that. He is a married father, “small town” dancing crooner with a lot of regard for his fans, hence each effort follows the slant of his musical career—not careening, just a slow lilt—and a rather remarkable thing about the guy is that he doesn’t have the delusion of the great R & B album being in his rather under-utilised vocal cords.
A Man’s Thoughts, no doubt, draws from previous efforts: upbeat tracks that necessitate slow movement, great love songs with a tinge of erotica and bland interludes. Personally, I think, Ginuwine should learn a lot from Carl Thomas whose interludes are short songs that sometimes outwit full-length songs in his album. It is worthy of note that these interludes are no audio movies, unlike The Senior.
I am biased to Ginuwine. I think his song writing is crappy, very below par in terms of intellectual engagement, but music is not “writing”, what makes a song or an album is appeal. A good album must appeal to several human conditions. I have found out that we humans attach songs as memory aids often.
So what do we have in this album other than good love songs that you can croon on the bed or in the car: nothing. But that should suffice, after all the album holds a shelf slot in the R & B department, the most mawkish of all contemporary music genres, and the direct consequence is that it must appeal to the lover, the loved and the bed.
Trouble is a great track, upbeat and all, but Orchestra is a personal fav(actually reminds me of someone). The song blows me away every time, the lyrics holds water. Show me the way has some recurring cords that surface in the most bizarre places e.g toilet. This album can best be described as a long playing continuum with several spots of brilliance and the rest is at best accounted for by mediocrity.
Anyway, I like it.

Not Water Closet Material

Wande Coal
Mushin to Mo-Hits (M2M)
Contrary to popular expectation once again, Wande Coal has “wowed” his fervent critics. He has produced a long playing record which is not W.C (water closet) material. Rather this album is going to stay where it deserves—in our hearts and on our CD trays.
Perhaps he might have disappointed his earlier fans who expected his chosen genre of music to be the sparse and unrewarding segment of R and B crooners, but all the same he has produced an album worthy of his record label, the indomitable Mo Hits.
Wande’s watchword for this album must have been PARTY. Hence club-bangers abound and even when the songs are not particularly up-beat to initiate or sustain body-wiggling, bumping of heads would suffice. This attribute is courtesy Don Jazzy, an acoustic maven who deserves to be called the High Chief of Nigeria Contemporary Production. His ingenious and Wande’s lofty croonings are the pieces that make the master-piece in this album.
The Mo hit cohorts also got their field day out on several tracks. More than not however, their efforts were below par and their contributions strike more often than not as fillers, of course except for D’Banj’s, a stud who has consistently justified his claim to being an entertainer.
I, for one, would have preferred if Wande collaborated with more homegrown, non-Mo hits affiliates. But this is something not obtainable from his record label; they rarely obliterate the confines of their Koko mansion, and even when they do, they limit interactions with the Storm record’s Ikechukwu and Nateo-C.
The album is an effort that can be repeatedly relished in one-sitting. With various high and lows that can cater to the listener’s needs, from love songs to party tracks to serious songs replete with real talk, every song hits its target and every target is accounted for in terms of record sales.

There is no mincing of words, an album like Gongo Aso is difficult to surmount either in artistry, social acceptance or record sales. It is with this caveat that Tradition, the L.P closely following Gongo Aso should be acknowledged.

Kudos must be given to 9ice who worked fervently to make something similar in delivery, as he recruited similar ingredients; but hits are not made, they make themselves. Perhaps this is why Gbamu-Gbamu cannot be another Gongo Aso, although it would pay its dues as a club banger like every upbeat song.

Also 9ice’s attempt to stretch his craft with every album is noteworthy. Certificate is a far cry from Gongo Aso, and only in terms of diversity can Tradition be rated above Gongo Aso. For one, more versatile producers are recruited, the mastering and mixing is top-notch, even featured artists like Germany-based Nneka in Show some love goes a long way to prove that 9ice made a more matured album with a wider catchment at Fanbase.

And if street appeal is being put to question, there is no doubt that 9ice had street in mind as this effort is targeted at all age groups in the street. 9ice’s ambassadorship as a proponent of the Yoruba language is laudable and it has become a style he can be identified with. And he must also be appreciated for the amount of research that would go into sounding African, different.

9ice is perhaps the only Nigeria hip pop artist who puts a flavor of local musical genres like Fuji into his music. But there are some songs that leave more to be desired on this L.P. But all misgivings can be forgiven, as 9ice’s loyalty to his craft is not in doubt.