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Reviewed by Darryl Kirk

Riqi Harawira: Sound Of The Long White Cloud

Reviewed by Darryl Kirk

Riqi Harawira: Sound Of The Long White Cloud

Featuring more guests than a celebrity wedding Riqi Harawira is the focal point of a set of tunes that span hip hop, soul, funk, rock, and pop. At 21 cuts this is a big album. In some ways  better for it – you get a variation of styles – but I found that the tracks Harawira recorded with his band could have stood on their own as a very solid album. Some of these tunes date back to the mid-’90s (when he provided lead guitar in Dead Flowers) but are not diminished by time. While the songs are well written and on the whole, the production is carefully arranged there is a disconnect between the band material and solo offerings. In the last ten years Riqi has been collaborating with a number of artists who fall into a more hip hop vein including Sir T, Kas “Tha Feelstyle” Futialo, Sarah Spicer and Juliet Cross. The album comes across as an overview of an evidently prolific artist who is obviously pushing forward with his craft, exploring new territories and prepared to collaborate at any opportunity. The standout tracks are those with a live band, but alongside, those cuts is 2001‘s Believe recorded with Future Funk Collective.