Multi-national neo-soul quartet Seba Kaapstad debuts their Thina album via Mello Music Group. The word “Thina” takes its name from the Zulu word for “us.” Seba Kaapstad is comprised of a South African, a Swazi, and two Germans. The album is a gorgeous halo of soul, encompassing several continents worth of sound, and obliterating the notion of genre.
They conjure beatific grooves that radiate with alluvial soul, celestial jazz, electronic experimentation and the polyrhythmic essence of Africa. It is marrow music, what digs beneath your bones, seeping into your bloodstream and inner visions. You hear flashes of the greats: Badu, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Jill Scott, and the Things Fall Apart-era Roots. You might even hear the ethereal float of Frank Ocean or the glowing bliss of Flying Lotus and Thundercat. But like all stellar quartets, Seba Kaapstad is indivisible and made stronger by the sum of their parts.
Thina consist of 12 of harmonic synthesis. Each song is a symphony of its own. Take “Don’t,” which opens with glistening pianos and a head-bobbing slap, then Zoe Modiga unleashes her sky-rattling voice, alternating between near-rapping and time-stopping, levitating multi-octave solos—all the while paraphrasing Shakespeare. And in the last minute, there’s an exquisite string coda that you’d expect to hear at a world-class philharmonic.
There’s “Breathe,” a spiritual hymn in search of water and solace, a loose-limbed rhythm that echoes the themes of Fela and the jams of classic Electric Ladyland neo-soul. While the title track alternates between Zulu and English, as Modiga offers inspirational uplift and timeless lyrics about the natural elements.
Stream Thina below, and cop the album here.
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