– GUERRILLA WARFARE –

A South African, a Swazi and two Germans walk into a pub…

…sounds like the start of a joke but it’s actually just the beginning of the multi-national neo-soul quartet known as Seba Kaapstad.

 Keyboardist Sebastian Schuster began working with vocalists Ndumiso Manana and Zoe Modiga back in 2013 – a full three years before debut album Tagore’s was released.

Having since added producer and percussionist, Philip ‘Pheel’ Scheibel to the mix, the band now release their follow-up Thina, from which Africa is taken.

As lead singles go, they don’t come much more ambitious than Africa. A jazz-funk concoction with hints of rap, hip-hop and drum ‘n’ bass in the mix, it’s also a multi-lingual affair with plenty of chants, “hey-hey”s and other assorted noises to keep you on your toes.

Schuster’s keyboards take the lead in this Rabelaisian ruckus, switching from jaunty neo-soul melodies going into the choruses to dissonant jazz chords coming out.

And throughout Modiga proves a captivating MC with her vocals showing a versatility and vivaciousness that cannot help but make you smile.

Thina is out now through Mello Music.

MORE FROM THIS WEEK’S MIX

KOJEY RADICAL: CAN’T GO BACK
DADDY: DADDY-ESQUE
RAPHAEL SAADIQ: SOMETHING KEEPS CALLIN’
TIZIANO BIANCHI: NIN-COM-POP

P.S. You can find all of the tracks reviewed above in the 45 Revolutions per Minute playlist below or click to access the 45 RPM Playlist on Spotify itself.

If you like what you hear (or even if you don’t), please engage in dialogue with me @45rpm_Reviews on Twitter. And, if you’d like to receive updates weekly, please subscribe to the email list to get these recommendations sent to your inbox weekly.

– SV –