Customer Reviews

Supermoon

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

After reading several negative reviews online of this album, I decided to pick up a copy of "Supermoon" and judge for myself.

"Supermoon" brings Zap Mama closer to the inevitable sound they've been moving towards at least since "A Ma Zone". With more urban, jazz, and hip-hop grooves than ever, this is probably their most accessible album to date. This is a good thing for those who are just discovering Zap Mama, but a hard reality for those of us long-time fans who loved the rich African feel of earlier releases. For "Supermoon", the most "african" thing about it is Marie Daulne's vocal style.

As for personal favorites, I enjoy the rousing opening track "1000 Ways" and the funky groove of "Toma Taboo". The title track "Supermoon", while catchy in an early Wyclef sort of way, strays too far from her style and includes some painfully vapid lyrics.

Overall this is a mediocre release.. perfectly sterilized for the general public, but leaving long-time fans to close their eyes and dream of "Adventures in Afropea."

Ahhhhh, Zap Mama and the Tour De Force behind it all, Marie Daulne. When I learned of the new release, I immediately rushed out to get it, and had to hit 3 different record stores before I found one that stocked it. I'm pleased to say that I have all of Zap Mama's releases, with the exception of the first two (Adventures in Afropea and Sabsylma), which are so fundamentally different from the later releases, that I almost don't think of it as the same band. In any event, I'm a huge fan, so it is with some level of regret that I have to write that this album fell short for me. I thought that true creative effort was lacking on many of the songs on this album, and it just didn't move me in the way 7 or Amazone or Ancestry in Progress did. The Michael Franti collaboration ("Hey Brotha")is just plain bad, and the title track is completely lackluster. Seems like more time was spent on the photo spread in the album insert than on putting out some really amazing tracks, the way only Zap Mama is capable of. That being said, I was blown away by the chorus on "Go Boy" ("Ohe Ohe Samangwa"--beautiful!!), and "Princess Kesia" is a sweet ode to, I'm assuming, her daughter and is about her child no longer being a baby but a beautiful girl. "Affection" is also a sweetly performed track. Most of the other songs are entirely forgettable. I do hope it grows on me. For now, I'll keep it in my car rotation and hope for the best. All that being said, I'll never pass up an opportunity to see Ms. Daulne perform live. Beautiful to watch and she is just a "presence!" Must catch her if you haven't. Finally, Ms. Daulne's voice in many ways is very reminiscent of Bjork's. I think if those two decided to collaborate on something, it could be history making.
Still a HUGE fan.
"Peace be a SuperMoon."

I'm at a point in my life where I'm exploring a bunch of new musical genres that I'm not familiar with. Before this album the only song I had heard from Zap Mama was "Brrlak," and I had to listen to that a few times before it grew on me. I bought this on a whim, not really knowing what to expect, but from the very first track I fell in love with the album. I usually have to listen to a CD 2 or 3 times before I start to really like it, so it's odd for me to find an album I like after only listening to it once. I was feeling down the day I got this and during the preceding weeks, but as soon as I listened to this album I felt really lively and happy. The upbeat rhythms of songs like "1000 Ways" and "Kwenda" always make me want to dance and just put me in a good mood (especially when I hear the "Payback" sample in "Toma Taboo"), while the slower-paced songs are really smooth and relaxing. There's not much there in terms of lyrical content, however I don't know any of the non-English songs so there might be something in those.

Like I said, I'm new to Zap Mama and this whole genre of experimental/fusion music, nor have I heard much of the past efforts of Zap Mama, so maybe my opinion doesn't mean as much as the other reviewers who are long-time fans and know much more about this type of music than I do. However, I think that enables me to judge it as a stand-alone album rather than comparing it to Zap Mama's past efforts. This album is great in terms of musical composition, so it's a nice album to listen to in the car on the way to work, or to have playing in the background while hanging with friends or something like that. The only thing I know of to compare it to would be Erykah Badu's "New Amerykah Pt. 1" album, except with a lot less social commentary. So if you like that album just because of the lyrical content then I wouldn't recommend this, but if you like the afro-funk and blues-ish experimental sounds on that album, then you'll enjoy this as well.

This is a very nice CD. I love it! Zap Mama didn't let me down on this one, this is a must in my repetoire.

Zap Mama - Supermoon (2007)

Compared to previous records like SEVEN and A MA ZONE, SUPERMOON is a step towards conventional, mainstream music. It often lacks the thrillingly bizarre and innovative aspects of their earlier albums. Part of this perception stems from the fact that Zap Mama's (who is essentially vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Marie Daulne) musical styles are now quite familiar to longtime listeners and can no longer deliver the "shock of the new." But while Marie Daulne's vocal acrobatics are largely (but not completely) subdued on this recording, in their place are classy songs with tasteful singing. And the album is also full of funky fun, pleasing poly-rhythms and jazzy inflections. SUPERMOON is expertly produced and there's fantastic background singing and interesting sonic touches throughout. While I wouldn't rate it as high as A MA ZONE or 7, this is quality music and there isn't a dud in the bunch, therefore, I rate it 5 stars.

Breakdown:

"1000 Ways" - kicks off the album with a quick-tempoed African beat and melodic bass. Features terrific singing and a super-wiggy keyboard. *****

"Hey Brotha" - an upbeat duet with Michael Franti celebrating a friendship that goes way back. This one showcases some of those crazy "vocal acrobatics" that I love so much, although I'm not super crazy about the "Hey brotha, hey sister" chorus. ****

"Super Moon" - The title track is the most conventional tune on the album, a laid-back track with acoustic guitar. Still, it's a sweet song and no one sings like Marie Daulne. ****

"Go Boy" - a mysterious sounding cut with rhythmic and jazzy piano chords. It opens with some infectious bongos and what sounds like a "woodblock vibraphone." There's some weird background vocal effects in there too. It's a haunting song about a boy who had to leave his town after being falsely accused of doing wrong. *****

"Affection" - a lovely, sensual song with beautiful flute and guitar. *****

"Fama Taboo" - approximates the slinky guitar line from En Vogue's "My Lovin' (No You're Never Gonna Get It)" (and I'm not sure where they got it but I think it's from an older song by the Supremes). The song is built around this guitar hook. It's good, sexy but not completely original. ***1/2

"Kevuda" - a funky track with some cool sax and some call-and-response style vocals. ****

"Gati" - super-joyous, upbeat and rhythmic with ecstatic vocal melodies. Sounds like a great party! *****

"Where Are You?" - a more subdued song, very classy and jazzy with nice upright bass, piano and trumpet. The rhythm picks up at the chorus as Daulne longs for the perfect love she has yet to meet. *****

"Moonray" - a shimmering track featuring more of Marie Daulne's classic "whisper singing." *****

"Princess Kesia" - a beautiful, magical album closer with heavenly harmonies and interspersed with intriguing sonic effects. *****

Marie Daulne, creator and driving force of the musical entity known as Zap Mama, has been recording and performing music for over 15 years. Born in the Congo to an African mother and Belgian father and raised primarily in Belgium, Daulne embodies the Afro-European energy of Zap Mama's musical creations. In a recent press release she recalls, "My early childhood was filled with the music of my mother, the music of the Congo... when I was growing up in Belgium... we heard a lot of French music [on the radio]. And of course, American music was also very popular all over Europe."

In her late teens Daulne made a pilgrimage back to the Congo and decided to become a musician. "...I was standing in the middle of the forest, hearing the music that had been a part of my earliest memories, and it was like an illumination, like a light." In 1990 the first incarnation of Zap Mama was born and Afropea reached #1 on the Billboard World Music Charts.

Dualne's highly personal sixth album Supermoon is her response to our cultural obsession with superstars. "I say let's be ourselves, and let's create a word for what it means to be ourselves. A 'supermoon' is a unique person. You can be a supermoon if you follow your own desires and pursue the things that you were born to do. To be a supermoon is to be true to yourself and others."

As opposed to her earlier work where Dualne brought together other women to sing with her, this album is all about Dualne. Written and vocalized by Dualne herself, each song in "Supermoon" helps weave a tapestry of musical styles, cultures, and in the end the artist herself. "I'm opening a door to who I am," says Dualne. Dipping as always into many styles including Afropop, American R&B, reggae, hip-hop, and funk along with a slew of top drawer musicians such as Me'shell N'degeocello, Tony Allen, and David Gilmore (who each pop in for exactly one song), Daulne offers an astonishing array of world music.

Who else can borrow James Brown's famous guitar riff from "Payback" and turn African pygmy music into the club anthem of "Gati" without missing a beat? She tells us stories of African immigrants, of human relationships, of schoolyard games and rivalries. And in the end she tells us about ourselves. Intricate vocals, polyrhythmic beats, and deeply moving stories to tell. This may well be the best Zap Mama yet!

I love all of my Zap Mama cd's.... except this one. I saw them live at the Fillmore in San Francisco in the '90's and they were wonderful. I also rushed out to get this as soon as I heard they had a new release but this is so... *bland* in comparison to all the others, and even a little *corny*. I was so excited and now I am sad. I miss the old Zap.

My favorites: "Adventures in Afropea" and "Am A Zone" I could (in fact I have) listen to them over and over.