Music / singer/songwriter

The exorcism of a spinster


Reviews (3)


Globalnyt

d. 13. Sep. 2019

By

By

Torben Holleufer

d. 13. Sep. 2019

"Et kvantespring hen mod en stil, der godt nok vokser ud af Zimbabwes rige kultur, men også vover en egen global stil ... Når det er sagt, tryller Hope selvfølgelig noget vidunderlig mbira frem, som på den aldeles transcenderende "Dream of Dande" ... Konstant demonstrerer denne kvindelige verdenskunstner overblik mellem gnistrende talent, udførelse og overblik, så hvert højdepunkt afleveres ... Jeg er forført og leveret. Hvilken afrikansk stjerne vi har her".


World Music Network

d. 26. July 2019

By

d. 26. July 2019

"Hope Masike [a long-time member of the band Monoswezi] is a pioneering singer from Zimbabwe who plays the historically male-dominated mbira (thumb piano). The Exorcism Of A Spinster, her debut solo international release, sees Hope speak from the heart about the country that she loves and the changing roles of women".


Songlines

2019 November

By

By

Jon Lusk

2019 November

"This is the confident debut solo album by this Zimbabwean mbira (thumb piano) player and singer, who may be familiar as the lead singer of Monoswezi. Throughout the album, there's a tangible musical narrative based on the changing roles of women in her country ... Listeners with their own expectations of a disc that bathes them in cascades of the shimmering woodymetallic luminosity of southern Africa's most iconic sound - like the best recordings of Stella Chiweshe or her daughter Virginia Mukwesha - might be disappointed. Instead, Masike's mbira is more rhythmic than resonant, although her keyboard player Erik Nylander makes a significant contribution to the sound. Masike seems more focused on her lyrics, which challenge Shona speakers to think about traditional attitudes towards women in Zimbabwe. Her band mix Zimbabwean traditional and kit drums, and their electric guitar lines mimic mbira plucking styles, much like Thomas Mapfumo did so brilliantly during the 1980s".