Words by Justin Turford
I know for a fact that Hive Mind’s boss Marc is a deep collector of Congolese music so this must be a dream collaboration for him - a co-release alongside Swedish label Sing A Song Fighter of the first ever solo guitar album from the legendary Congolese guitarist Kahanga Dekula aka ‘Vumbi’!
Vumbi Dekula’s journey to his first solo album after 40 years of ensemble playing has a surprising circularity (much like the music) about it with his relationship to his guitar and Sweden going way back. Born with polio in North Eastern Congo, he was raised in a Swedish missionary home and the guitar was an early attraction. An education in the infectious Congolese rumba and soukous sounds was provided by the invincible talents of Franco and Dr Nico via the radio - a life as a musician was possible.
Moving to Tanzania in the early 80s, he became the star lead guitarist for the much loved Orchestra Maquis for many years before emigrating once again to Sweden in the early 90s where he became a virtuosic guitarist for hire, performing and recording with several Europe-based African outfits. In 2008, Vumbi (his nickname came from his time with Orchestra Maquis) created his own Dekula Band which from a humble start in a tatty restaurant in Stockholm took its irresistible rumba and soukous grooves (with other Pan-African influences) successfully to the European festival circuit.
It is at this point that Swedish producer Karl Jonas Winqvist appears. Founder of the Sing A Song Fighter label and a member of the absolutely wonderful Senegalese/Swedish act Wau Wau Collectif, he had long been a dedicated fan of Vumbi’s talents so he took the Dekula Band into a Stockholm studio to record their debut album ‘Opika’, a six tracker of pure joy and energy that he released in 2019.
The final track on ‘Opika’ was perhaps a harbinger for this solo project. Simply titled ‘Congo Acoustic’, it is a stripped down instrumental with a stark rumba clave pattern holding down the rhythm leaving Vumbi to weave gentle hypnosis on his acoustic guitar. The absence of the dance orchestra’s brass, vocals and rhythmic power exposed the poetic grace of his fluid circular playing and it is beautiful.
Karl Jonas proposed the idea of recording a solo album to Vumbi and the process began nearly immediately with the album being recorded over two days in the studio during lockdown; the intensity of writing and recording the album in such a short time giving it a vivid and spirited clarity. Aside from Vumbi’s guitar (and one time vocals), Karl Jonas contributed subtle piano, bass melodica, expertly placed field recordings and light percussion to the record; his brightest idea, the use of an old Acetone rhythm box drum machine as an occasional foil to Vumbi’s superlative melodies was a masterstroke.
The delightful first single from the album ‘Maamajacy’ harnesses all of these moving parts with the addition of the soft backing vocals of Emma Nordenstam. A simple rhythm box loop and rumba clave sit behind Vumbi’s bright syncopated picking as he wanders through its melodic story, a wordless choir adding harmony and a feeling of a family gathering. Straight away, we realise that this ‘experiment’ is a huge success. Homely, intimate and joyous, the simplicity of the recording lays bare the restorative emotional impact of his music, a true balm for the soul.
Not all of the songs here arrive so full of instrumentation. Opening track ‘Afro Blues’ spends most of its duration as a hypnotic and unchanging guitar loop, field recordings artfully used as the atmospheric background. Just when you think Vumbi is never going to leave the melodic loop, he changes angle, a conduit for a burst of expressive blues.
‘Zanzibar, Kinshasa & Vällingby’ is an ode to his brothers back in Zanzibar, DR Congo and to his new home in Sweden, and is a lovely folky number, his double-tracked guitar showcasing why he was so beloved as a lead guitarist in the various dance orchestras he played with.
As he mentions on the album notes - “Our Congo is suffering just because of the richest soil”. Vumbi’s homeland has been and continues to be one of the most exploited and fought over regions on Earth due to its over-generous abundance of minerals. The fact that Congolese musicians continue to express themselves through such beautiful melodies is a testament to their characters and despite the implied subject matter of ‘Congo Yetu’, its delicate bluesiness still contains a healthy dose of positivity and lust for life.
Forthcoming single ‘Zuku’ brings back the drum machine with one of its most famous presets the bedrock for a more Caribbean island swing, one of Vumbi’s guitar tracks a swaying hammock, the others full of majestic lead lines. There’s an Ernest Ranglin vibe to this particular composition which I love and Emma returns to contribute a nicely haunting otherness to the song with her restrained but eccentric piano lines.
‘Weekend’ is the party starter on the album. A bouncy beatless groove packed full of counterpoints and flourishes, the faint use of Karl Jonas’ bass melodica adds texture, but this is Vumbi in his pomp as he expresses jubilance and happiness through his fretboard. Gorgeous.
The album closes with the startlingly titled ‘UN Forces (Get Out of the Democratic Republic of Congo)’. Back comes the rhythm box and guitar but also a banjo, an unheard of instrument in soukous and rumba! Interweaving rhythm and top lines and a merengue styling provide a lightly driving groove for Vumbi’s only vocal on the record - a defiant call for the United Nations to leave his troubled country.
A wonderful record that breaks down that Congolese sound to its bare bones, revealing the melodic heart of the music through the fingers of a master. Vumbi and Karl Jonas have created something very special indeed. 10/10
Released on 15 September 2023 on Hive Mind Records / Sing A Song Fighter
Pre-order HERE! https://vumbidekula.bandcamp.com/album/congo-guitar