Mabulu (dialogue in Shangana) was a band from Mozambique that recorded its debut release Karimbo during the catastrophic floods of early 2000. It brought together musicians from different generations, Lisboa Matavel (‘the troubadour of Mozambique’), born in 1938, to the young Chiquito, born in 1978, who represents the new Mozambican rap movement.
Lisboa Matavel, the Grand Old Man of marrabenta (Mozambican rhythm) started to sing in the early 1960s during Mozambique’s ‘golden age’, when Maputo –then known as Lourenço Marques — was still the music capital of southern Africa. From another world comes Chiquito, star of the Mozambican hip-hop group Mad Level. Both musicians met in a studio and Mabulu is the result. Old marrabenta rhythms from the 1960s and militant anti-civil war raps sung in Shangana, Ronga and Portuguese, were combined into a musical message of hope and solidarity bridging all generation gaps in these most tragic of circumstances.
The group became one of the highlights of the world music festival circuit in the years 2000-2001.
On the group’s second album, Lisboa Matavel was joined by the oldest marrabenta musician, Dilon Djindji, who is ten years older. The rest of the and is formed by Antonio Marcos on leads vocals, Zoco on guitar, Eduardo on bass, Jorgito on drums, female vocalist Chonyl, and rapper Chiquito (of Mozambican hip-hop group Mad Level).
Lead vocalist Chonyl died in Maputo in September 2007.
Discography:
Karimbo (Riverboat Records, 2000)
Soul Marrabenta (Riverboat Records, 2001)
African Classics: Mabulu (Sheer Legacy, 2009)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
