THE HOUSE OF SUN-EL: Sun-El Musician, Simmy, Mlindo The Vocalist, and other related artists

this album is exactly what i could've hoped for, about an hour of songs that scratch the same itch as akanamali

been looking forward to this, haven't heard it yet

really quite impressed on first listen. the back half might be my favorite, with the two purely instrumental cuts toward the end being big highlights, "the wave" in particular.

"akanamali" really deserved to conquer the world. as much as i hate to keep singling it out for praise, it deserves all of it and more.

for whatever reason the follow-up single to "akanamali", "bamthathile", has not clicked with me tho

oh man i love bamthathile. loving this so far

This is great.

good timing for summer around the corner

what a good album

god bless a record that goes out of its way to make me feel like i'm on a boat

aw :)

Yeah, this album is really good.

Hate to make this comparison, but some of this sounds like an Innervisions release or something I expect Dixon to be remixing.

But yeah, enjoying this a lot anyway.

Haha yeah I remember Culoe de Song’s early stuff sounded a lot like this.

Nothing off this has stood out as much as Akanamali, which is a one-in-a-million amazing song, but it's neat so far.

If you ever get to go on a sunset drive down the motorway, whack that song tout-de-suite

this is amazing

Okay so I still think Akanamali is a unique piece of work that towers over p much everything here. About 50% of the rest of this sounds like passable vocal house and doesn't really interest me. I definitely prefer the stuff that's more obviously African/South African styling but I need to listen a few more times.

It may be classic vocal house, but I like its light-luminous-breezy character so imo it compares favorably to classic house (a genre I've only brushed admittedly). Akanamali will likely remain the crowd favorite, but the rest is really consistent and agreeable, with some glorious layers and a great sense of melody. I haven't bought a CD in ages, but I'd buy this to play it in the car yeah. Impressive debut.

I'll say it's a bit unfortunate to open with With You given some of the tracks that follow, it'd have made more sense to have Simmy instead of the American accent of that Canadian chick. I'm also questioning it because the latter part of the album (from Sonini to Bamthathile) sounds so strong to me, though I can't complain about Akanamali - No Stopping Us - Goodbye.

If you like Akanamali, this one is for sure the closest
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CedK4VtxLEI

I'm kinda addicted to 'Sengimoja' and 'Goodbye'.

Nabozo OTM. With You is kind of hedging its bets, but overall it's a pleasant (sometimes erring on the safe/generic side) listen. The last part of the album is much more like it as far as I care so far. This'll make great BBQ music whatever happens

With You is one of the weaker tracks but it's still nice for the vocal loop that comes in at the end.

Sengimoja is the one.

I was listening to Sonsini and thinking how amazing it would be to be dancing to this song at sunrise and then the soft rock guitar came in and just slayed me. That one might actually be better than Akanamali.

The rest of this album = let vibes be unconfined.

Sonini slightly reminds me of Time is Over (for sheer technoish sky-suspended brilliance). Qamata sonini.

Okay I listened to the whole album twice while driving this morning and it's really growing on me. Still not a big fan of the first track but the rest is wonderful. Definitely great in the right context

since I rinsed Akanamali last year, I find starting on track 3 works really well

Testing the waters with the Sun-El fandom: I posted this slightly trippy SA gem on the Afropop thread, but over there no one’s biting.
https://youtu.be/J1ednPRrNH0

Zinaro ft. JB (of Thee Legacy) & Dust, “Dali Wami”

As for the S-EM album, “No Stopping Us”, which didn’t do much for me when it dropped in February alongside “Bamthathile”, really shines in the album context. It wears its generic Robin Schulziness extremely well.

Every English-language voice on this is kind of unwelcome even when the music is amazing - that first track is a case in point, when she drifts into the background and the vocal loops come in it's completely sublime but before that nah.

Agree on “With You” (but it’s as much the melody and the vocal itself as the English) and maybe “Life We Live”, but I’m fine with the English on “No Stopping Us” and “Goodbye”. NSU feels to me like an open invitation to play Janelle’s “Screwed” next.

is there a way of buying this album without having to go via iTunes? I don't want a stupid iTunes format file, I want an MP3 or pref a FLAC/WAV?

I don't know if it's available digitally in FLAC/WAV anywhere but Google Play has it in 320 mp3

“Sonini”, the track with Simmy and Lelo Kamau, is the new single and has a video to go with it: https://youtu.be/cFr81MqoTKw

i think that's my second favourite after Akanamali

The entire run from Sonini to the end is absolutely faultless and glorious.

i'm looking forward to this being my sunny road trip album this summer

Album of my summer. Particularly the second half. I do wish it was available physically.

Bumping for the Bank Holiday weekend.

I liked this from the git-go, but I had it on the other day and realized that it's really sunk in for me without me realizing. So many great tracks.

Simmy's album Tugela Fairy is supposed to be out sometime in the near future. hopefully there's more songs as great as Ubala on it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYT1YZxG-OU

can confirm that this album is excellent sunny road-trip listening!!

"ubala" is really nice

ain't no stopping us the sun is out let's have some fun https://2c.zol-img.com.cn/product/29_1200x900/744/ceIJSwLhp0LM6.gif

i'm glad simmy will be putting out her own album

i also love lelo kamau's vocal on "goodbye" especially

yesss "sengimoja" has a video now too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4lhMWpUZVg

def another album highlight

Mlindo The Vocalist, the... singer who’s featured on “Bamthathile”, has his own album out (he worked with DJ Maphorisa though, not with Sun-El).

“AmaBlesser” is the hit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WWwuUeXQRg

Simmy dropped three tracks of her upcoming album. Very hard to choose between them, they’re all gorgeous, but I’m picking “Umahlalela”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H1c8eD6NZyA

This seems as good a place as any to post this majestic Heavy K track that's in a similar (but perhaps more euphoric) vein:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoR2UVK8OPc

Yes, that’s a good one.

But damn it, I can’t not post “Ngiyesaba” also. Bring it on, Simmy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koOMqVjHcKg

Kenza (without Claudio) with Ami Faku --->>

"Sihlobo Sami": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3I6WvQGwFA

love that track.

Sweet and intoxicating, a few steps short of transcendental, really few. Love the vocals. There's also an extended mix

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZ1CgbfIYik
Sun-EL Musician - Portia's Chant

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZkcF5lzN3k
Sun-El Musician - Higher feat. Simmy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fXZqYgYfBA
Sun-El Musician - (more) Higher feat. Simmy

just listened to this <33333

great tune

oh it's gorgeous

Very uplifting comedown music

this is fucking good

what a song. love everything they do together.

i like side b ("ululate") of the single he just put out

this is so beautiful

"Wawundithembisile" - The One Who Sings ft. Sun-El Musician and Kenza

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExkZRexTaiM

Sun-El's new album African Electronic Dance Music is out today, a little more palatable than the last one at "only" one hour & 3 minutes. The first four and last two tracks on initial contact seem like the highlights

ooh thanks! surprised this isn't getting more attention...

The whole thing is great.

need to listen to it asap

honestly, i slept on the last one. it's definitely way too long, but i really like disc 2 and disc 1 has several great tracks too

I love him but his work is so samey it can be hard to pick out highlights. Not really a criticism but if I’m enthusing about him, I’ll still send friends to Akanamali first.

Or Emakhaya. Ok there’s a few…

yeah the last album definitely suffered from being nearly 3 hours, i'm sure it would have been much more enjoyable if you cut it down to the best hour or less, but getting to that point would be a real challenge

new one seems better on first listen, though the vocal tracks are notably stronger than the instrumentals

love the album all the way thru

tho he has something of a signature aesthetic i don't know if it's quite fair to call his music samey. there are a few tracks on here that i would not have guessed were by him if they'd been in the middle of a mix/comp or something

it's only really an issue over the course of a 3 hour album

The number of tracks seems to come from a place of generosity, though, rather than “lack of quality control”

Three quarters of this - the first half and last few songs - are excellent. "Amateki," "Higher," and "Bestfriend" especially. "Amateki" is an immediate mood boost. "Higher" has a spiritual quality to it and is one of my favorite tracks of the year. The third-quarter of the album, which consists of instrumental afro-house tracks "Jozi", "Spiritual Bomb," and "Alone" I wish was about 10 minutes shorter.

https://ra.co/features/3968

still the best thing Sun-El has been involved in this year:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k05g9_Yo7fI
Miči ft. Sun-El Musician • Respond

one of my favs ❤️

Sun-El doesn’t make amapiano (although some remarks and posts here and elsewhere suggest otherwise), but I’m hoping this poll I created might get the amapiano party started again on ILM, because we’re seriously logging… lagging behind. here’s your invitation - I hope you will all participate:

drowning in a blissful ocean of log drums and keys: 🎹🎹 amapiano a-z 🎹🎹 an ilm poll

not Sun-El, but this is a production by fellow Afro House adept (and sometimes collaborator) Thakzin:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gp3o_c2pCtA
Nana Atta ft. DJ Thakzin • Libalele

(I haven’t listened to the rest of the Emakhosini EP it’s from yet)

^^^ very good little EP. made me realise how little afro house I’ve been listening to in the past year or so (post-“Osama” perhaps?) - too much piano, too little time basically.

I loooove “Nyoni”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pO3W3YUH6zI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTYV_8ef0a8
Msaki ft. Sun-El Musician • Pata Pata Saguquka

Hmmm, think I recognize the chorus of that from somewhere else? Possible cover?

are you in jest, sir?

https://www.musicinafrica.net/magazine/sa-miriam-makeba-featured-new-whisky-ad

from the new Murumba Pitch album (which is otherwise firmly and delectably in the piano camp):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcJsdfOkr-o
Murumba Pitch ft. Ami Faku & Sun-El Musician • Esikhathini

not sun-el, altho a callaborator...has anyone listened to karyendasoul's 'we live 4 our music'? i havent really stopped listening to it for the last month

i dont know whats my favorite on this, but my shortlist is "juba", "mngani wam", "umthandazo", "umoya, "jacaranda" (which is half the album).

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkxvR5h7irQsPpq-AHY7QE3fb9KJ8bhxG

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31d8F0v4VWo

and not for nothing his collabs with zakes bantwini have been incredible

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mu3D6FqyYw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_O5pHq6myw