Here is one of, if not the best, songs we’ve heard over the last few weeks. Ibeyi are Lisa-Kaindé and Naomi Diaz, a French / Cuban duo who have signed to XL records (Jungle, Adele, Vampire Weekend, Radiohead) a label that has a track record in bringing quality whatever the genre to your ears. Oya is their debut single and the song's haunting and stirring vocal harmonies hark back to something deeply mystical. The term world music is a horrible one, but it fits here, yet in some ways it's also otherworldly. Added to this are some unique percussive textures and truly a captivating video. As we said, without doubt one of the best things we've heard in the last few weeks.
According to the internet Ibeyi’s music is inspired by the culture of Yoruba, which originated in West Africa but moved to Cuba. The Yoruba community is meant to have the highest twinning rate in the world, the name Ibeyi meaning Twins in Yoruba.
Of course this could all be a load of PR company tosh. We have an A-Level in Geography but we’ve never heard of Yoruba until today, but we’ve Googled it and there are plenty of entries for it, so it must be true, because the internet never lies. Right?
What definitely isn’t a lie is the fact that Oya is a stunning and innovative debut, the sort of thing that fans of the likes of Bjork will probably fall head over heels in love with. Press play and be wowed.
Ibeyi - Oya (Video)
1 comment:
Wow. Stunning.
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