Legacy+ : Stop the hate : For(e)ward

"Dobbeltalbummet Legacy + er britisk/nigerianske Femi Kutis og Made Kutis medrivende hilsen til faderen/farfaderen, Fela Kuti, der om nogen var afrobeatens pioner. Som et fælles projekt har Femi og Made hver især lavet et album, tilsammen et dobbeltalbum, og musikken afspejler i begges tilfælde Fela Kutis ånd ... Især Femi [bringer] på sit album - ikke overraskende - indtil flere aktuelle, politiske agendaer i spil (...) som dårlig regeringsførelse, vold, had, korruption og skamløshed ... [På Made Kutis album] er de politiske agendaer også evidente, men de er samtidig mere subtile. Udtrykket er mere moderne og progressivt, bevarer nok rødderne i den afrikanske rytmik, men tilføjer moderne elektroniske, urbane riter og loops og en særegen form for vokalbaseret indierock".

"With the Afrobeat rhythms simmering and burning as fiercely as they did on early classic albums such as 1998's Shoki Shoki, there's a propulsive urgency to Femi's vocals [on the first disc in the package] and his own sax playing has never sounded mightier. On 'Pà Pá Pà' he rails against Nigeria's corrupt politicians who 'waste our life'. The jazzy 'As We Struggle Everyday' with its call-and-response vocals seems to carry a wider message of solidarity in these days of Black Lives Matter. The title-track is another standout, driven by a busily inventive drum pattern of which Tony Allen would have been proud, while the closer 'Set Your Minds and Souls Free' is a hypnotic, high-octane Afrobeat epic that evokes Fela in his heyday".

"Top of the world" - "The dynasty continues with the debut ['For(e)ward'] from Omorinmade Kuti, grandson of Fela and son of Femi - but with a difference, as Made emerges as the first of the Kuti clan to step decisively outside the family tradition to fashion a sound entirely his own. Classically-trained in London, the legacy is honoured on 'Different Streets', which pays tribute to his grandfather and namechecks several of his albums. Yet Afrobeat is just one of an eclectic stream of global influences that includes alt-rock, experimental jazz, Latin, reggae and contemporary classical composition. Playing horns, guitar, keyboards, bass and drums, he sings in an arresting baritone or adopts a spoken word style that smartly avoids the clichéd tropes of rap. Standouts include 'Free Your Mind' with its modulating layers of horns and the off-kilter 'Young Lady', in which he tackles the subject of sexual harassment ... The first great album of 2021 has landed".