Immy Owusu and Sensible J are in full colour on mesmerising EP Spiritual War
Ghanaian-Australian singer and multi-instrumentalist Immy Owusu and South African-Australian drummer and producer Sensible J just released their fantastic new collaborative EP Spiritual War through Hopestreet Records.
A mad fusion of afro-funk, Zamrock, jazz and more - the five-track odyssey is a soulful, groovy and powerful experience oozing with creativity and passion.
Title track Spiritual War opens the release with a tight, punchy and scathing takedown of colonialism and African exploitation by the West - over an infectious rhythm section and crunchy guitar line.
Guest vocals from friend Kuukua Aquah and Aoteoroa rapper Mazbou Q fill song with a sense of community and shared action, while a dark energy exudes from the track, portraying the fear of living under late stage capitalism.
Curly Hair is an absolute earworm of hip-hop and afro-funk that refuses to leave your brain once introduced. An absolutely delightfully melodic mix of melodic guitar and percussion, the song portrays a feeling of somehow anxious bliss.
Doom Elevator has the best guitar part of the record - nothing short of genius. A song about losing control in a steadily more lost world, the theme of fear and confusion in todays troubled world continues.
“When will we get down"?
Penultimate tune Feel It Out is a real left turn on the EP - a jazzy number complete with a flute solo - a brilliant oddity. The kind of song you could listen to in the bath or at the beach, the laid back drums perfectly complement the falsetto vocals from Owusu as soft swells of flute float all around.
Closing out the EP is a stripped back version of the title track - acting more as a reprisal for the record than a remix. A different, somewhat less tense version - the alternate option makes for a cool closer to quite a conceptual EP.
“The rhythm goes on”
Listen to Spiritual War here.