Could We Be More

In 2018, Brownswood released its influential 21st century London jazz overview We Out Here. Its final track, "Abusey Junction" by octet Kokoroko, was its surprise hit, melding contemporary jazz, R&B, West African highlife, and Afrobeat. They followed it in 2019 with an eponymous EP that registered more than 68 million streams. Could We Be More, their debut long-player, arrives four years after their initial appearance. Led by trumpeter Sheila Maurice-Grey, the octet also includes saxophonist Cassie Kinoshi, trombonist Richie Seivright, percussionist Onome Edgeworth, keyboardist Yohan Kebede, guitarist Tobi Adenaike-Johnson, bassist Duane Atherley, and drummer Ayo Salawu. These 15 tracks continue to combine the styles showcased on "Abusey Junction," but also Yoruban, Caribbean, and Latin sounds alongside jazz, juju, soul, and funk. Bubbling opener "Tojo" melds sweeping ambient sounds, chunky electric guitars, dubwise bass, and punchy Afrobeat horns in a buoyant groove. The bridge offers a sultry melodic center teased by brass, reeds, and sonic effects. The drum-centric "Ewà Inú" adds Yoruban flavor to syncopated funk and elegantly arranged horns. The transcendent "Age of Ascent" was inspired by a late-night oceanside walk before a recording session. Introduced by Fender Rhodes and a shimmering snare/hi-hat beat, it follows Seivright's melodic trombone uplifted by sax and trumpet in a silly, summery jaunt. "Dide O" weds souled-out brass to bluesy reeds, swinging highlife guitars, and chanted female vocals under a funky bassline and simmering percussion. While "Soul Searching" delivers a syncopated, utterly danceable union of Afro-Latin, highlife, and Afrobeat, "We Give Thanks" is an anthemic exercise in spiritual jazz-funk, stitching Congolese overtones to Afro-Cuban horn lines, biting bluesy guitar, and a bumping son-esque bassline, as the singers hover wordlessly. "Those Good Times" features a tender vocal by Maurice-Grey (with chorus help from Kinoshi and Seivright) atop breaking Nigerian beats, dubby basslines, Latinized guitars, and punchy keyboards. The anthemic "War Dance" enters with urgent, martial drumming, percussive Afrobeat horns, swirling synths, sparkling guitars, and a roiling bassline. It breaks down, then rises again as the instruments bleed together. Maurice-Grey's electronically treated trumpet break binds them together as she weaves through the rhythm section. "Something's Going On" is Kokoroko's Afro-funk 21st century answer to Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On." A chanted forefront chorus frames jazzy brass and gospelized reeds. They alternate between charging Afrobeat and jazzy soul. Bass and drums silhouette their cadences. The horn section executes the bridge in loose harmony, as guitar and keyboards flavor the margins. As a whole, Could We Be More is an omnivorous, welcoming set whose overarching influences Kokoroko's members grew up with and around. It expertly combines these global roots traditions with hip urban sounds in a distinctive mix that's at once contemporary and timeless. Well worth the long wait, this is the kind of creative, far-reaching, accessible album that comes along once in a generation. ~ Thom Jurek