Trust Khosa Harare Bureau
TRIUMPH! This best sums up Alick Macheso’s latest album, Tsoka Dzerwendo, whose release had been a matter of conjecture for the greater part of last year.
And after the long wait as the sungura key-holder had been keeping fans guessing, he finally delivered a well knit project to the masses yesterday.
Production wise, Macheso’s latest offering struck the right chords and lyrically, he continues with his role as a true social evangelist.
In fact, Macheso preaches the message of hope, family fibre as well as advocating for an end to gender disparities.
Like a true humanitarian ambassador and philanthropist we have come to know over the years, Macheso’s heart bleeds for women and vulnerable children who suffer at the hands of irresponsible fathers.
The opening track, Baba, which exhorts men to take full responsibility for their families, sets the tone as it was expertly put together in all departments – mixing, arranging and engineering.
Credit goes to the rhythm guitar player who showed his composure, a rare feat with most instrumentalists in this particular genre.
For a change, the rhythm guitar dominates in this song, unlike in previous albums where Macheso had a bias towards his trademark bass guitar riffs.
Macheso slows gears a bit in the next song – Kurarama Inyasha – where the singer does not only exhibit his maturity as an instrumentalist but also preaches and shares God’s grace with his followers.
In this track, he gives the lead guitarist an opportunity to express his sheer brilliance while at the same time his trademark bass lines are difficult to ignore.
In the next two songs – Wandirangaridza and Munyaradzi – Macheso comforts tormented souls through song, a task he does with aplomb.
Macheso’s heart bleeds for broken families as he urges people to consult widely and wisely before making suicidal decisions. He feels there are some Herculean tasks, which are not worth sacrificing the soul for as they put people’s lives in real danger.
Again, the project is a flawless production as Macheso has also proved to be a true perfectionist.
The track Mude, Mude makes the album complete and like other songs; there is no filler in this project.
In short, the project is worth the purchase as the singer ended his four-year album drought. To the doubting Thomases, it is high time they come to their right senses as Macheso is simply treading on the right path.
Macheso once again retraced his roots as he resorted to his original beat when he left Khiama Boys. Put simply, Tsoka Dzerwendo is indeed a triumph to the singer and fans have already endorsed it as a masterpiece.