Closer Apart album cover
Closer Apart

Okzharp , Manthe Ribane

2018
Hyperdub

South Africa’s electronic music scene is truly remarkable. While it was often dominated by the most passionate love for house music anywhere in the world — leading to many local variants — as the 21st century wore on it began diversifying rapidly. From the grassroots Durban sound of gqom, through the radically queer soundscapes of Angel-Ho and FAKA, to the hyper speed grooves of Shangaan Electro, there has been wave upon wave of music full of emotional and intellectual intensity. This remarkable, sultry futurist R&B album is a collaboration between S.A.-born Londoner Gervase Gordon, formerly of Hyperdub stalwarts LV, and Manthe Ribane, a well-regarded dancer, visual artist, fashion designer and musician originally from Soweto. Together they’ve made a record that doesn’t shout about its identity, but rather slinks through your subconscious with quiet assurance, leaving its hooks and refrains embedded, leaving you puzzled but addicted. Like label mate Jessy Lanza's output, this is proof that Hyperdub can “do pop” — it even touches on light-as-air tropical house — without ever compromising the label’s own underground credentials.

Joe Muggs

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