Thanks to Shani Evans '01, on Saturday Hamilton House hosted "Club Africa," Amherst's first party playing purely African music was held at Hamilton. This column, which I hope will be part of a more in-depth series, is for those of you who liked what you heard and/or want to learn about African music. In the spotlight this week: kwaito, a form of dance music from Southern Africa.
Starting from South Africa and encompassing the area through Zimbabwe, Botswana, Swaziland and essentially most of the region south of Capricorn, kwaito music rules. With an intense fusion of live instruments and synthesizers, kwaito feels similar to techno with two main differences.
First of all is the presence of lyrics that are essentially sung out in a normal voice. Rather than trying to meld the voices into the music as is the fashion in most techno songs, the singing is distinct and in most cases considered to be the primary component of the song.
The second significant difference is the existence of an underlying heavy bass that rhythmically drums in the background. A feature carried through from ancient times, it is this particular component that dictates the speed at which one dances to the song.
Overall, kwaito is best characterized as techno with a tinge of hip-hop and reggae thrown in for flavor. In the recent past however, there has been a shift towards sounding more like house music.
My favorite kwaito group is the South African trio TKZee. They were ignored when they released their debut album, "Take It Easy," in 1996. However, within in a year, the single "Palafala" had catapulted them to the top of the charts and the limelight. Their latest album, "Guz 2001," exemplifies their talent, and contains one of my personal favorites, the compulsively danceable "Fellakae." As it is performed in Sutu and Tswana, of which I speak neither, I am not exactly sure what they are singing about and cannot say much about lyrical content. However, whatever it is they are saying goes quite well with the music.
Other notable Kwaito performers are Arthur, Brenda, Mandoza and Mdu.
Kwaito, like hip-hop in the U.S., has become a cross-cultural phenomenon. Blacks and whites in the area all identify with the music, an unprecedented trend.
For more information, check out www.kwaito.co.za or listen to the African music shows on WAMH 89.3 FM on Fridays 10 p.m. to midnight and Sunday 10 a.m. to noon.