Staff Picks: Space Afrika - Honest Labour
For fans of: Emotive Electronic Ambience
What they're saying: Matt McDermott at RA praises Space Afrika’s diversity in both sounds and features: “On Honest Labour, they sift through myriad 21st-century electronic styles and invite a chorus of Mancunian voices to document a shared experience.” Pitchfork’s Hubert Adjei-Kontoh notes Honest Labour’s depth on close listening: “Though the music may sound minimal on a first listen, Space Afrika fill up the songs with samples and heavy instrumentation, overwhelming with disjointed parts.” And Phillipe Roberts at Flood Magazine on the record’s evocative production: “Part of its magic was in allowing beauty and heartache to emerge from thin recordings that barely bled through the carefully manicured chaos around them. Honest Labour dispenses with opaque lo-fi-isms in favor of high-definition clarity.”
What we say: The Manchester duo have made a unique and affecting record of near-ambient electronic music with an array of interesting voices, spoken and sung, guesting.