Ki! is the musical brainchild of songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Christian Ki Dall who recently signed to Crunchy Frog. The producer recently finished his new album, The Boy From Haeundae Beach, which saw him employing a wide variety of genres but the track that really caught our ears is this one titled "Abeokuta". The record is a superb fusion of Afrobeat with contemporary sounds that sounds like something from the past and the present.
Inspired by the late great Fela Kuti (whose hometown is Abeokuta), the record sure taps into the spirited nature of some of Fela's compositions. The guitar arrangements are frenzied and cinematic while the rousing drum grooves don't let up for a second and keep the energy on the highest level till the end. Ki! sure knows his onions and infuses a bit of an Asian-felt guitar theme alongside a lush baritone saxophone solo, he still pays homage around the 1-minute mark with an explosive breakdown reminiscent of the guitar phrases from Fela's "Shakara" song.
Ki’s debut album was born as the tunes were written and recorded, track by track, over the course of a couple of years, many as homages to some of his favourite artists such as Fela Kuti, Sharon Jones, George Harrison, J Dilla, Link Wray, Elizabeth Cotten, etc. The variety of genres, styles and sounds on the album is all over the map, drawing inspirations from different periods and from all over the world. The breadth and depth of this project ultimately are the real attraction and packed with 20 highly diverse tracks, some instrumental, some featuring guest vocalists, span this debut double LP.
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