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Now Hear This: Urban Village | Udondolo

The Soweto quartet blend traditional and contemporary sounds on their debut disc.

THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Feet in the tradition, head in the future, the four musicians of Soweto’s Urban Village (Lerato Lichaba, Simangaliso Dlamini, Tubatsi Mpho Moloi and Xolani Mtshali) get their inspiration from the rich musical heritage of South African soil.

Their first album Udondolo (Walking Stick) delivers a totally original synthesis of Zulu guitars, indie-folk, maskandi, South African choirs and jazz, all carried along by an undoubtable energy and charisma. Their songs are steeped in the cultural consciousness of yesteryear, including the famous “ubuntu (common humanity)” and Pan Africanism. Recorded at home with the energy of live music, the disc was patiently polished in the studio by Frédéric Soulard (Maestro, Limousine, Jeanne Added).

Udondolo taks you on a journey through all the colors of Soweto, a dormitory town designed to better monitor those who were sent there, that has become the laboratory of music where the hopes of an entire people resonate, even today.”

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