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The WireApr 5, 2018Fela’s youngest son inherited Egypt 80 from his father in 1997 when he was 14 years old and keeps alive its joyously angry spirit. “Last Revolutionary” is a passionate tribute to the wider inheritance of anti-colonial effort and courage that comes down through Kwame Nkrumah, Patrice Lumumba and Jomo Kenyatta, as well as the Nigerian founders. It gives way immediately to the signature title track, which owes much of its airplay to a typically intense but refreshingly unmannered Carlos Santana feature as well as some of Seun’s most intense tenor saxophone. [Apr 2018, p.51]
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Mar 8, 2018It's a breathless, topical, danceable ride, and an important chapter in the annals of art as protest. Kuti is truly his father's son.
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Mar 7, 2018Black Times succeeds on its own terms and not as an artifact.
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MojoMar 2, 2018This promises to be a hard one to beat for fire and fury. Fela would be very proud. [Apr 2018, p.92]
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UncutMar 2, 2018Producer Robert Glasper adds a jazz sensibility lacking from Fele's original albums, while Carlos Santana shreds on Black Times, but it's the Egypt 80 big band who are the stars. [Apr 2018, p.29]
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Mar 2, 2018While Black Times clocks in at more than an hour, its incessant drive, appended by lush textures, a diverse sonic palette, rich dynamic, and melodic variations keep it edge-of-your-seat compelling. All told, it's evidence that the younger Kuti has come into his own with Egypt 80; he is charting his own path from the roots of his father's music.
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Mar 2, 2018On Black Times, Seun Kuti continues to be one of the most important voices in music, by simply reinforcing to us what we already know.
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Mar 6, 2018Growing up to the world as Fela Kuti’s son will naturally always cast something of a shadow over Seun Kuti’s music, but Black Times comes across as both a respectful reminder of his legacy and a demonstration of Kuti’s own fresh talent.
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Mar 2, 2018For the most part, the music backs up his mood. It’s faster, tougher, and more blood-boiling than usual, but it’s still malleable, growing to a furious peak on “Corporate Public Control Department” or slowing to a mournful groove on “African Dreams.”
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Mar 5, 2018If you listen to this album with your head, it is a politically charged rally to the people, but if you listen with your body, it is an album designed to make you dance--the hallmark of any release bearing the Kuti name.