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Mokoomba

Venue: The Lantern
Town: Bristol
Date: 06/04/14
Website: http://www.mokoomba.com

Audience members gathering in Bristol's Colston Hall had the right to be excited. Mokoomba are one of the hottest prospects in African music right now, a statement that cannot be taken lightly. In fact, it seemed strange at first that the gig would take place, not in the main concert hall, but in the rather smaller Lantern Room. One would think Mokoomba would be able to fill the hall quite comfortably with their sound, but no matter, the prospect of being feet from the musicians had now taken over. And I needn't have been concerned.

Hailing from a small village near Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, Mokoomba have shot to critical acclaim in the past couple of years, listing in fRoots' Top 10 Albums of 2012 for their album 'Rising Tide' and catching the eye with sets at WOMAD and on 'Later… Live with Jools Holland'. The hype is deserved. As the lights went down, a solitary figure dashed onstage, wearing an African tribal mask; he revealed himself to be lead singer Mathias Muzaza, giving a call, to which the rest of the band responded. Cue fantastic a capella song, which at first left the audience enraptured, then caused them to dance as the tempo was raised.

After that it was non-stop music, with 2 hours of upbeat brilliance. The front 3, Muzaza, guitarist Trustworth Samende and bassist Abundance Mutori, were always on the move and sublime in their own performances. Behind, the percussionists were almost more lively, creating scintillating backdrops, and of course, providing powerful backing vocals wherever they could. The fact that every member of the band was singing not only increased the volume, it increased the sense of unity within the band.

The Zimbabwean tradition has always seemed to be that bands play as many gigs as possible for many hours at a time, which naturally creates a slickness within the band. To say that Mokoomba played effortlessly would be a gross understatement. The understanding between the whole band was such that they had choreographed dances around the music. Their experience also coincided with a huge back-catalogue of songs; they only played 2 songs from 'Rising Tide', not even playing perhaps their best known hit, 'Njoka'. Instead they filled their set with a capella songs, percussion pieces and even audience interaction.

Star of the show Muzaza proved an effective master of ceremonies despite saying very little, possessing a quite astounding voice that probably didn't need a microphone to be heard. He has the lightness and smooth tone of all the great African singers, yet with ease he can switch to a multiphonic technique, creating a growl that gives yet another edge to his performance.

On only two occasions did the mood change. At the start of the second half, Samende and Mutori combined in a Spanish-sounding jazz piece to ease the audience back in. Samende in particular showed wonderful skill in his light, deft guitar work. Then, later on, he provided the only accompaniment with a repetitive, melancholic riff that the others sang over. This was led, of course, by Muzaza, and despite not understanding the words, it was clear enough that this was a lament, or a grieving song. Muzaza's voice defied gravity on some occasions, and was a devastating wail in this case.

Superlatives are over-used in general review, but Mokoomba's performance was the embodiment of stunning, and a real treat to experience. They seem to be putting jit back on the world radar all by themselves.

Laurence Morgan