Thebe Mabanga
music
Thebe Mabanga
The illuminated, garish dcor of the Horror Caf will witness a peculiar vibe when four musicians and a hip-hop DJ take to its stage in the Politburo sessions this Friday.
“We are not trying to create a band,” says S’Bu Nxumalo of the Nuff Said Kollective (Nsako), organisers of the event. “We are trying to create a clubbing concept that is just based on a loose collective of carefully selected musicians,” he says, adding that the concept will always retain space to work with new ideas.
The musicians selected for this session weigh in with diverse influences.
Yfm DJ and Jam Alley presenter Rude Boy Paul mans the decks. “People who know me from TV and radio have only been exposed to the side through which I relate to the youth,” he says. “For instance, I have an interest in poetry. This [Politburo] session gives me a chance to explore a side that some people may not be aware of.”
Paul takes his skills to a different level when he uses his turntables as a musical instrument. His vinyl scratching interacts elegantly with drums, saxophone, keyboards and vocals.
The drumbeat comes from veteran Puerto Rican drummer Efrain Toro.
Toro speaks with an American accent, acquired after 22 years of living in Los Angeles, and great affection when he speaks of his native country’s musical tradition, which, he reckons, is as rich as that of the Buena Vista Social Club.
At 46, he has played professionally for 30 years and has recorded with saxophonists Stan Getz, Chicco Freeman and Richie Cole.
South Africa fascinates Toro because it is the only country he has been to that has not got a drumming culture. In his four months here, he has already recorded an album for SAfm with bass guitarist Concorde Nkabinde among others. He plans to open a drumming school in October. Judging from an improvised, menacing riff he produced at a rehearsal, willing students should thrive under his tutelage.
Improvisation is the key word in this session and another interesting spontaneous performer is 22-year-old saxophonist Moses Khumalo.
In a brief career he has worked with the late pianist Moses Molelekwa, an experience he describes as “the greatest and the saddest thing to happen” to him. He is now biding his time as a Sheer Sound artist waiting for the right time some time next year to record a solo.
One of the country’s most sought after programmers is Ezbie Moilwa. He has shared his talents with giants like Hugh Masekela and considers this an opportunity “to break down barriers that exist between artists of different styles”.
Moilwa is in his element when he programmes original jazz tunes, but is equally adept at polishing popular standards such as Cry Me a River. He says: “The trick for musicians and audiences is to be open-minded.”
A vocalist we should be hearing about a lot in coming months fronts the session. Nanasewu Magagula, who performs simply as Nana, has searing, potent alto vocals and a sassy, Bohemian look that presents an image of a serious songstress.
She has just recorded her debut single Ungangishiyi. “I draw on a range of influences, for although I am a jazz vocalist, my work has traces of hip-hop in it.”
Her single has also been remixed into a version that has a house music slant. In this session, and maybe in later albums, she hopes to explore her hidden talent as a mbira player.
The session will also feature Izwe Sound System, the world music DJ partnership between the heavyweight Nikki Blumenfeld and the “General”, S’bu Nxumalo.
The Politburo session is at the Horror Caf on Friday June 29 . Tickets are R50 and will be availabe at the door, which opens at 9pm