David Byrne once wrote an essay provocatively entitled 'I Hate World Music'. This made the convincing case that the genre label was meaningless and that any music should be judged in terms of quality rather than its geographical origin.
It goes without saying that western culture has a big impact on African music and vice versa. Paul Simon's 'Graceland' and Vampire Weekend's 'Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa' are just a couple of examples of records which draw upon the best of both worlds.
The Very Best make no bones about following in this tradition. The brains behind the project are the Swedish-Malawian duo of DJ/producer Johan Hugo and singer Esau Mwamwaya.
Mwamwaya sings in Chichewa, Malawi's national language, so we have to take his word for it that the songs cover themes of poverty and political corruption. Hear Me apparently has lyrics which express his frustrations about the lack of progress in Malawi since independence but the majority of listeners will be more drawn in by hi-tech production values and slick bass rhythms of Vampire Weekend’s Chris Baio,
You certainly wouldn't glean any earnest political content from the exuberant mood of the record as a whole. As Johan explains : "Makes A King is about celebrating the positive and the negative in life – and striving to stay happy through it all”.
The band's fourth album was recorded in a village called M'dala Chikowa, a half Christian, half Muslim community which served as a symbol of peace and harmony in a world divided by religious and cultural differences.
The duo welcomed contributions of local choirs and musicians because they wanted the sound to be as spontaneous and organic as possible. The a cappella Bilimankhwe features the Malawian band Jerere.
"We're constantly on a new journey which colours the music we make” says Johan and the strength of the album lies in the subtly shifting moods.
The joyously anthemic Let Go or Mariana and the gorgeous pop harmonies of Guju Guyu juxtapose with the infectious dance grooves of Sweka and the title track. The latter is the only song with prominent English vocals (sung by Jutty Taylor; aka Jutty Ranx).
Arguments about authenticity of this 'world music' may occupy purists but are ultimately redundant. The presence of Sengalese superstar Baaba Maal (on Unaslye) should be all the endorsement you need that this is high quality music
