Originally from Cape Verde, the ephemeral septet Voz di Nicolau recorded a single coladeira album in 1976. The Analog Africa label has re-released this treasure.
The album Fundo de Marê Palinha is the only trace of the short existence of the group Voz di Sanicolau. Forty-four years after the recording of this album in a studio in Rotterdam, home to the Cape Verdean diaspora, the German label Analog Africa is once again playing the history teacher by offering to re-release this exceptional record. Recorded in just a few days, the group released six dynamic and spontaneous tracks, inspired by the music of their island of São Nicolau, located in the north of the archipelago. Appearing in the 1930s in São Vicente, the coladeira – an accelerated version of the morna – is a very popular genre in Cape Verde. Voz di Sanicolau appropriates its codes and glorifies the style in its own way thanks to high-pitched electric guitars, subtle keyboards and dancing rhythms, all accompanied by the cavaquinho, a small Portuguese four-string guitar.
The few tracks on the album give an idea of the natural charisma of the two leaders, Joana di Rosario and Tô-Zé, who sing here with passion. Voz di Sanicolau was probably writing the first page of a great career but the band ended up dying prematurely, the musicians having been forced to go back to their everyday work. The importance of this album can be summed up not only by its originality but also by the fact that Joana was the very first Cape Verdean woman to appear on a studio album…
The album will be released on July 10, 2020 on Analog Africa, pre-order here.
