Yes, we can be more – kokoroko
Yes, we can be more – An Album Review of Kokoroko’s ‘Could we be more’
On 5 August 2022, Kokoroko dropped their debut album titled ‘Could We Be More.’ This title sounds like a question, but the deliberate absence of a question mark presents it as a statement, almost as if the collective is demanding a response as opposed to asking for one politely.
Through the album, Kokoroko prove the answer to their statement is a resounding yes – we can and should continuously strive to be more in the ways we consume black music, perform black music and also in the ways we choose to venerate our legends. Kokoroko have clearly taken the path of being directly and heavily influenced by the work of Fela, Ebo Taylor and Tony Allen on records such as ‘Age of Ascent’ and ‘Something’s Going On.’ The album’s introductory song ‘Tojo,’ relies on psychedelic rock elements, similar to the music performed by afro-rock bands in the 70s, such as The Funkees. Last but not least, there’s a direct correlation between the Ju Ju music pioneered by musicians such as King Sunny Ade and Sir Shina Peters on ‘We Give Thanks.’
I find the numerous parallels between the first and second half of the album really interesting. There’s a lot of repetition between the songs as reflected on Blue Robe (pt. i) – the second song on the album and Blue Robe (pt. ii), which is the final song. The same songs are also reprised within the album, as heard through the connection between ‘Dide O’ and ‘Home.’ The soothing lyrics initially heard on the fifth song titled ‘Dide O,’ are repeated over different instrumentals on the twelfth song titled ‘Home.’ However, this repetition does not feel forced, boring or lazy – it feels like ‘Dide O’ and ‘Home’ are in conversation with one another.
‘Dide O’ presents a careful juxtaposition, as the lyrics are softly conveyed against instrumentals which command a sense of urgency through the use of the trumpet. On the other hand, the instrumentals on ‘Home’ are much more subdued, but the softness of the lyrics on ‘Dide O’ are maintained. Both songs give me the feeling of falling asleep in the car during a long journey and someone wakes you up because you’ve almost reached your destination or because you’re almost home. ‘Dide O’ wakes you up with soft enthusiasm, you can feel the excitement about reaching your destination within the song. On the other hand, ‘Home,’ sounds more cautious, the latter song is more mindful of disrupting your peace but it lets you know you’ve reached your destination anyway – you can’t be asleep forever. Both songs convey the same message with different tones. The concept of reaching one’s destination and going home is such a simple, yet relatable and important journey that is explored in different ways by Kokoroko, particularly through the parallel relationship between ‘Dide O’ and ‘Home.’
The artwork on the album stood out to me. The undeniably black hands reaching out to each other and not quite meeting but still uniform in the way they are presented, creates a sense of connectedness from a distance. Almost as if the hands are eager to find each other because they recognise that they are the same, but can’t quite get there – they never completely touch. The hands are displayed against the backdrop of a blue sky and I think its important that the sky in this artwork is not clear or bright blue – it’s a dull, somewhat sad blue with visible clouds. This should stir up emotions of melancholy but I feel quite the opposite when I look at the album cover. The blue backdrop makes me feel emotions of peace, serenity and simplicity – three core themes which reflect the music included on Could We Be More. With this cover art, Kokoroko have carefully and subtly demonstrated the clear and oftentimes undeniable link between album covers and the music associated with such art. I think artists should care a lot more about what their album covers look like and its great that Kokoroko understand this.
For anyone who would like to start listening to Jazz music or music which doesn’t rely heavily on lyrics to convey its message, the London Jazz collective, Kokoroko is a good place
