Kaöb – Danza Lingüística Review

What does Kaöb sound like?

Downtempo chillout rhythms trotting the globe for different voices and instruments to melt into.

The review of ‘Danza Lingüística’ by Kaöb

Through extended downtempo, chillout grooves and rhythms, Kaöb has been making music for the clubs that sample and bring different cultures and voices together as one. If he isn’t creating world music samples for others, he is supporting his co-founded Tawa community for ceremonies and festivals. Scoring all of this is Kaöb’s music and his latest release ‘Danza Lingüística’ is a global trek.

Blending organic and ethnic influences together, each of the five tracks takes you on an elongated journey around the world to hear different voices speak their native tongue. Mixing in various samples with world instruments, this is your 2am come-down soundtrack to return to yourself and get lost in yourself quietly. The music itself features languages and dialects from Ethiopian tribes, Guyanan, the Amazon and Japan. The vocals often float around disembodied, only to take hold at specific moments to push through a chant at a key moment. Moving between singular voices and community calls makes this more impactful.

On the melodic and rhythmic front, Kaöb stays almost metronomic in his approach, making this near 40-minute release at times feel like one seamless track. ‘Bushi Nengé’ reminds me of Madonna’s ‘Bedtime Stories’ with a low dub keyboard bubble synth. ‘Aməˈzōnē’ mixes in wooden percussion and warm, humid synths to drench the animal whistles, guiros, and jungle calls. ‘Ethiojahz’ brings in brassy jazz samples and mixes them with community songs over a bassy beat. The nearly 10-minute ‘Ahi a Tumwi’ is probably the most cinematic and climactic. Kaöb uses village chants and songs to build up the track over time as the keyboards and synths slowly get a sizzle and sharpness to them. It never breaks out beyond its downtempo pace and vibe, but there is a passion brewing. That leaves the jazz-future beats of ‘Ukiyo’ with its dissonant sweeping synths to close out the album. This track is full of gurgling keyboards, baby and children samples, and crystal and glass instrumentation. It is the most sonically unusual, whilst being atonal at times too.

Kaöb’s ‘Danza Lingüística’ is an interesting foray into language and dialects, and I applaud the global approach to instrumentation and voice. This release feels like it’s designed for rhythmic meditation, and so the hypnotic and metronomic nature of it could be both a blessing and a curse. If you want to zone out to global beats in a very relaxed, neon-drenched world, Kaöb has the perfect album for you. If you are looking for something with tempo variation or big sonic changes across a record, this might be best served up as individual songs instead.

Recommended track: Ahi a Tumwi

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