Customer Reviews

Soul of Angola Anthology 1965-1975

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Soul of Angola is a record well suited for those rainy-day moments in everyone's life. Even though about a dozen different artists recorded its contents over a 10-year span, the two discs hold together seamlessly. I don't understand the lyrics, but they come across as inexpressibly sad. Yet the music is often fairly uptempo and features bright guitars playing minor-key licks. The musicianship is absolutely impeccable; these guys all were born knowing how to swing.

"Mama Divua Diame" by Avozinho is one of my favorites. The singer projects a husky alto, then while the guitar solos away he contributes a spoken obbligato. The entire time, the rhythm section is absolutely in the pocket. These are obviously all dance musicians; they could play these grooves all night but, all the songs on "Soul of Angola" cut off after three minutes or so.

Put this record on when you feel exhausted and weepy. Listen to the first disc, and slowly the hypnotic rhythms will pull you back to your senses, while the lyrics assure you, "It's OK to feel miserable." By the time the the Jovens do Prendo mini-set in the middle of disc 2 comes on, the double-time guitar sambas of "Coio" and "Africa Merengue" will have you back feeling your able, normal (cheerful?) self again.

Wonderful music...if you like this, I suggest you look for music by Bonga (he's got a great live recording, Swinga Swinga), Paulo Flores, and Carlos Burity. Angola 90's is another great recording.

You might also like some Haitian konpa music-try live recordings by Michel Martelly (a.k.a. Sweet Micky) and Tabou Combo.

Certainly different than what is in the net of music I normally listen to --which I thought was as wide as they come. After listening to the album I was obsessed with finding similar works. It's a rare collection of music that speaks to your soul, and satisfies your taste for a light sound that is complex and rich. There is nothing artificial or canned about this masterpiece that seems as if it marinated for 4 decades on soul and spice. Arthur Nunez has a track that is full of contradictions; your mind is stimulated at the same time relaxed. You feel as if you are drifting with the beating of the drum but grounded by soulful sound of this African ballad. A story is told that transcends all languages with the use of a variety of instruments one can only guess are native to Angola such as the Saxi (katchakatcha) or the Ngoma.

If you liked the LuakaBop compilation _Telling Stories to
the Sea_, you will love this compilation. It doesn't quite
have the range of _Telling.._, but there is enough stunning
music on these two (quite long) discs to make it worthwhile.
Some great guitar instrumentals too.

This double CD encapsules a timeless glimpse into what must have been an exciting time for Angolan music. I bought this on a complete whim, with no previous experience of Angolan culture (yes, I had to look it up on a map), and since then I have had the album playing on repeat. Every single day for the past month I've come back to it for at least half an hour at a time. It's perfect to put on in the background, but that's not to say wilts under the light; there are times when you find yourself sticking a particular song on repeat because it speaks to you on a profound level.

I don't speak Portuguese or, funnily enough, any of the regional languages and creoles native to Angola, but the vocals are raw and communicative enough for this not to be an issue; if anything, the ambiguity creates an otherworldly atmosphere to accompany the visceral latin-influenced shuffle that permeates through each track on the CD.

Personal favourites include Sakeça Mukongo by Avozinho, Lena by Os Bongos, and the songs Mundanda, Mabelé and N'zambi by Oscar Neves - an artist I truly wish I could find more work of...

Even if you don't feel musically "qualified" enough to buy this CD; buy it. There's so much genuine emotion in each song that any language/culture barriers are instantaneously broken down.