About

The roots of Angolan popular music explored in the meticulous guitar studies of Mário Rui Silva 1980s albums.

Whether on mesmerising acoustic ballads or hypnotic groove-led tracks, the music of Angolan guitarist, researcher and intellectual Mário Rui Silva has a beguiling, melancholy quality, woven into the dynamics of his deft guitar playing.

Rhythmically complex yet supremely effortless, the music collected here stems from three albums Mário released in Luanda in the 1980s that reflect his diverse range of influences, from traditional Angolan and West African rhythms to European jazz and classical instrumentation.

It is united by a sense of low-key beauty, whether on the chugging opener ‘Kazum-zum-zum’, the jazz-funk keys of ‘Lembrança Dum Velho’, or the twinkling, late-night poly-rhythms of ‘Kizomba Kya Kisanji’. — (via Label)

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The latest righteous reissue from the terrific Time Capsule is a retrospective focused on the `80s recordings of Angolan guitarist / musicologist, Mario Rui Silva. Each of the 14 selected songs is a showcase for his 6-string skills. From the clipped, acoustic, jazz of Dembita, to the Mexican cantina, Ry Cooder-esque, Lonjura. There are swinging serenades, bolstered by backing singers – with the vibe of a village sing-along – and lullaby-like ballads. On Kambanza K’etu Mario flashes through scales with a flamenco flourish. Bursts of bold brass, cute flute, twilight trumpet, and some serious sanza, also accompany the assembled shuffling semba and kazukuta rhythms. To be honest, the album`s a damn fine fit between Time Capsule`s previous Serginho Meriti and Gratien Midonet projects.

Comparisons to Brazilian contemporaries, such as Jorge Ben, Lo Borges, and Milton Nascimento, are impossible to ignore. These similarities are perhaps inevitable since both Brazil and Angola shared centuries of Portuguese colonial rule, and both suffered severely at the hands of the slave trade. Sad and savage history ties the countries, inextricably. Listening, ignorant, I was wondering if there were any connection between Mario’s music and that collected by John Gomez on his outstanding Outro Tempo opuses. Reading the press notes it became clear that in each case the preserving of traditional musics was a definite political statement – one of national identity and independence. 

Mario’s music, however, isn’t heavy, or dark, in the slightest. It remains sunshine-filled from its stunning, standout, opener – the strummed, feel good, funky folk of Kazum-Zum-Zum – to its close. In fact the LP provides the perfect soundtrack to drinking with friends, spending an easy afternoon, drifting into sunset and beyond. Shutting my eyes I can see tropical weather bleached stucco walls, hear the chink of glasses, laughter, light-hearted banter and chatter. — (via Ban Ban Ton Ton)

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— 45RPM, pressed on black vinyl
— Half-speed mastered by Stuart Hawkes at Metropolis Studios
— Includes 4-page insert with new writings, photographs and reflections following Mário Rui Silva’s passing in 2024

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Label: Time Capsule
Format: 2 x Vinyl, LP, 45 RPM, Compilation, Reissue, Remastered, Special Cut, Special Edition, Stereo, Audiophile Edition (Half-Speed Master)
Reissued: 2026 / Originally Released: 2021
Genre: Jazz, Latin, Folk, World, & Country
Style: African

File under: Latin-Influenced
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