Muito Kaballa - Tomorrow A Flower LP [Batov]

Format: LP in printed sleeve + download card.
CAT: BTR120

Muito Kaballa return in style with a modern, refined sound on Tomorrow A Flower for London’s Batov Records, fusing indie pop, soul, hip hop, jazz, Brazilian rhythms and West African grooves.

Originally conceived as the solo project of tenor saxophonist and composer Niklas Mündemann, Muito Kaballa has transformed into a full ensemble, based between Cologne and Berlin, championed in spaces such as BBC 6 Music by the likes of Deb Grant, Tom Ravenscroft & Nubya Garcia, The Radio 2 Jazz Show with Jamie Cullum, Seattle indie institution KEXP and Music Is My Sanctuary, as well as being much loved for their energetic live shows.

Tomorrow A Flower builds on the success of the acclaimed album Like a River, moving away from that record’s marked jazz focus to push towards more direct, contemporary and sophisticated pop. It still overflows with soul and nods not only to African funk and hip hop but also to clear modern references, including electronic pop favorites like Jungle By Night and cosmic groovers Khruangbin.

The album opens with lead single “Loving You”, a comforting if almost melancholic groove, referencing both classic soul and the contemporary soul of electronic maverick Jitwan on “Opendoors”. Grounded by a steady mid-tempo snare and tambourine beat, while the irresistible harmony between voice and brass threatens to lift it, as the vocal slowly unfolds.

“In My Delir” continues perfectly. Featuring South African singer and KEXP favorite Petite Noir, and conceived in collaboration with Muito guitarist Benjamin Schneider, the track opens with a captivating guitar riff melting through the speakers like a disintegrating highlife loop. Shuffling Brazilian snares lead us to the heart of the track, where Petite questions the distance between his dreaming mind and a heart worn out by love. Destined to soundtrack the plucking of petals by unrequited lovers.

The pace picks up on “Flowers Only Grow After the Rain Falls”, a highly energetic fusion of Muito’s Afrobeat roots with vibrant soul and electronic touches. Almost reminiscent of Nina Simone’s See-Line Woman, were it not for the punk-pop vocalisation in search of harmony and the benefits of friction.

At the album’s epic climax, “Make Me Bigger”, guest vocalist Jermain Peterson asks the listener to “take my hand and make me bigger”, in an emotional ode to friendship and its power to overcome personal fears and doubts. West African grooves and afrobeats (yes, with an “s”) support winding tendrils of jazz, soul and pop that will no doubt appeal to fans of SAULT, Michael Kiwanuka and Yazmin Lacey.

Tomorrow A Flower closes on a high with “Too Good For Me”, a playful and irresistibly catchy exploration of insecurity, weaving afrobeat, boogie, pop and punk into a future dancefloor stomper, situated somewhere between Paradise Garage and the Shrine.

Tomorrow A Flower is a modern classic: a tapestry of multiple sonic genres that intersect into new perspectives, complement each other and leave space for the charming and original songs and sounds of Niklas Mündemann and Muito Kaballa.