Riaan Wolmarans
CD OFTHEWEEK
It must be really nice to be talented – if you’ve got it, flaunt it, and that’s exactly what Delenta is doing on her new album, simply called Delenta (Renegade). The Sudanese-born singer makes a welcome entry into South Africa’s ranks of solo female singers – an area where looks sometimes seem to count more than singing ability. But Jenny Delenta’s got both: you might remember seeing her in Not the Midnight Mass or presenting Options on television.
Produced by South AfricanMusic Award-winning producer Craigie Dodds, the album is an overall entrancing collection of ambient pop-dance sounds, dipping into world music in places, with constant dance rhythms that never become obtrusive.
The first single, Fall, is a flowing, trancey track, ideal for Delenta’s mellifluent voice. It’s not the only good track on the album, though. Sudan is a highlight with its tribal rhythms underpinning Delenta’s soaring voice, with her sister Rosanna’s Greek singing and Kendall Reid’s cello lending it an atmospheric, exotic air.
Some tracks come across a bit bland and uneventful, such as In Rhythm with You, but there’s more than enough catchiness on songs like Higher Ground and Streets, which sounds as if it could just as well have been included on the latest Sting album.
Delenta is a worthy, beautifully crafted debut effort – hopefully the start of an illustrious singing career for the singer.