L8 Antique – NTU Futurism (2025)
South African ensemble L8 Antique has released its debut album, NTU Futurism, a project rooted in African spirituality and science.
The band grounds the album in the Bantu concept of NTU, described in their materials as a universal life force connecting people, nature, and all forms of existence. Within this context, NTU flows through several interlinked dimensions:
Muntu / Abantu – human consciousness
Kintu – living and non-living energy
Hantu – space and time
Kuntu / Isintu – the way of being
Ubuntu – humanity and interconnectedness
Through NTU Futurism, L8 Antique positions itself within a new strain of African futurism, combining ancestral references, spiritual practice, and cutting edge technology. The group highlights three temporal pillars in its work: Emandulo (the past), Namhlanje (the present), and Kusasa (the future), presenting itself as a bridge between historical memory and imagined futures.
The band’s engaging live shows function as ceremonial performances as much as concerts. The ensemble uses Impepho, a sacred plant in Southern African traditions, to invoke ancestral guidance and set a ritual tone.
The skillfully designed, succulent music draws on irresistible African rhythms, dazzling jazz improvisation, and modern electronic production to create what the band calls an immersive, cinematic experience aimed at both physical movement and spiritual reflection.
L8 Antique refers to music as “sacred technology,” a medium through which energy can align and portals of transformation can open. The group describes NTU Futurism as an Afro-futuristic, spiritually focused project that seeks to connect audiences across race, culture, and time by unifying ancient wisdom with forward-facing sound design.
According to the band, NTU Futurism marks the beginning of a new era in African music where ancestral rhythm, electronic experimentation, and the NTU life force come together in a single, continuous flow of creation.
Author: Tyler Bennet
