BEHIND THE STITCH: ALANI
June 21, 2024
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Nigerian highlife duo The Cavemen. unveiled their latest musical offering, a two-pack single featuring the tracks “Medicine” and “Opportunity,” released on December 13, 2024. This release continues their mission to modernize and globalize the highlife genre, blending traditional African rhythms with contemporary jazz and soulful elements.
“Medicine” and “Opportunity” exemplify The Cavemen.’s dedication to revitalizing highlife music. The tracks are characterized by vibrant African rhythms, jazz influences, and soulful undertones, creating an uplifting and therapeutic listening experience. The duo describes these songs as a call to groove and reflect, exploring the therapeutic possibilities within modern highlife.
This new release has garnered significant attention, with fans expressing excitement and appreciation for the new tracks. The excitement is bubbly and infectious, sl considering this is their first release in quite a while.
“Medicine” is a beautiful song with a hoppy beat pattern and infectious flow that just has you nodding and tapping your feet. The simplicity of lyrics, consisting almost entirely of the chorus– “Medicine. See what you’ve done to me. You are my medicine”–is such that you find yourself confidently singing along almost as soon as you start to listen. A perfect example of the beauty of simplicity.
“Opportunity” is almost entirely made up of beautiful, beautiful instrumentals. It commences with the drums then gradually infuses the bass guitar and then the saxophone, all beautifully infused with vocal harmonization. Finally, towards the latter part of the five minute song, we get to hear a simple and sweet chorus sung in pidgin– “Opportunity, as e come for me, e go sure for you.”
The Cavemen., consisting of siblings Kingsley Okorie and Benjamin Okorie, certainly showed off their extensive artistry and musical prowess, producing the songs themselves, as they usually do. They both command a range of musical instruments with Kingsley being a beast on the drums and Benjamin commanding expert control of the guitar.
Both, have been instrumental in the resurgence of highlife music in Nigeria and beyond. Their innovative fusion of traditional and modern sounds has earned them critical acclaim and a dedicated fan base. They certainly did not disappoint with this new releases, delivering something uniquely different and thoroughly refreshing.
As the year draws to a close, “Medicine” and “Opportunity” offer listeners a chance to groove and reflect, embodying The Cavemen.’s commitment to delivering soulful and culturally rich music.
