Afrikalou

Swedish percussionist Robin Cochrane resides in Stockholm, and has lately been concentrating on the balafon, West Africa’s gourd-resonating marimba-like instrument. This debut album under his own name (Cochrane has previously recorded as Robbie Rulah) sounds like the product of a home recording process, although possessing a slick sonic quality.

A mild problem lies in a certain stiffness to some of the instrumental tracks, which feature Cochrane adding drumkit beats, keyboard frills, and additional small percussion parts. The best works here feature guest vocals from Fanta Yayo and Ebo Krdum, also living in Sweden. While the instrumentals have a pristine studio smoothness, the charged vocal contributions add an extreme reverb crackle to the songs. A couple of numbers feature nimble Zimbabwean-style basslines from Sugarray Napunyi, but most of the cuts have a Malian or Senegalese feel. Further guests bring in horns, kora and guitars, although the tunes never become too crowded. A reggae haze pervades the track ‘Fakoly’, with further vocals from Yayo, joined by the mysterious guitarist Zilverzurf. This collective energy encourages Cochrane to spill out his Guinean balafon solos with an increased fluidity, dodging lightly around the beats.