On the Romance of Being

After the release of Desire Mareas incredible self-titled debut, the South African artist spent two years training as a traditional Nguni healer, or sangoma. He heals people through music, channeling spirits through ancient songs and drum rhythms. Instructed by ancestral spirits, he drastically changed his approach to making music for his second album, recording the songs with a full band, sometimes in a single take. While Desire was an intense, sometimes cathartic mixture of experimental club styles, On the Romance of Being is nearly devoid of synthesizers and has almost nothing to do with dance music. Working with several key figures in South Africas jazz and experimental music scenes, including Sibusiso Mashiloane, Sbu Zondi, and Andrei Van Wyk, Marea and his collaborators create a lush, organic sound blending art rock, post-punk, avant-garde jazz, and gospel. The lyrics, sung in English and Zulu, are erotic, philosophical, and personal all at once. The heart-racing "Be Free" takes inspiration from groundbreaking filmmaker Marlon Riggs, particularly his statement that "Black men loving Black men is THE revolutionary act." Mareas message is that all love stories are worth telling, and freedom is always worth fighting for. The entire lyric of the opening track is "I wanna see you levitate," and a few other songs evoke a weightless feeling, such as the string- and horn-laden "Makhukhu" and the sensual, intimate "Skhathi." "Rah," a duet with Zoe Modiga, is a haunting, semi-operatic epic with lyrics describing humanitys destruction of mother nature. Even lengthier, and more hypnotic, is album-closer "Banzi," which evokes a trance state in a similar manner to Mareas practice as a healer. As furious horns and rushing drums build up to a frenzy, his harsh, growling vocals eventually explode into chaotic laughter. Seductive, poetic, and uplifting, Desire Mareas music is powerful in so many ways. ~ Paul Simpson