MTMTMK

The Very Best

MTMTMK

Second album of Afro-pop meets electro-pop from the Malawi/Sweden duo Esau Mwamwaya and Johan Hugo Karlberg

ADM rating[?]

7.2

Label
Moshi Moshi/Coop
UK Release date
16/07/2012
US Release date
17/07/2012
  1. 10.0 |   The Guardian

    A reincarnation of Paul Simon's Graceland, quarter of a century on
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  2. 9.0 |   PopMatters

    MTMTMK is like a Western pop album that’s decided to suss out all the Africanisms inherent in Western pop
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  3. 9.0 |   God Is In The TV

    So addictive is this album that I’ve had it on repeated play on more than one occasion. Whatever the weather, get this on your stereo
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  4. 8.0 |   The Irish Times

    The tropical pop that underpinned their debut is amplified and toughened to set a new kind of scene
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  5. 8.0 |   Evening Standard

    The vocals throughout are multi-layered, as though hundreds are singing along, which soon they surely will be
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  6. 8.0 |   The Fly

    It mixes Western pop sensibilities with traditional African sonics to create something bold and bright
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  7. 8.0 |   musicOMH

    In a dour, dark world, we need more bands that want to make us dance as much as The Very Best
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  8. 8.0 |   Independent on Sunday

    This is a joyous burst of blissed-out world pop, and MTMTMK should broaden their appeal to take in Vampire Weekend and Fela fans alike
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  9. 8.0 |   DIY

    May not quite carry the same dazzling shock of hearing something truly different in the way their debut did but it is certainly an album that carries on the spirit of the debut while progressing their sound at the same time
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  10. 8.0 |   Q

    Even more propulsive than their debut. Print edition only

  11. 7.5 |   A.V. Club

    For the most part, MTMTMK chugs along merrily, creating a global dance party that’s nearly impossible not to enjoy
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  12. 7.0 |   Consequence Of Sound

    Whereas Warm Heart of Africa had a giddy, grinning enthusiasm, this disc propels that mirth onto the dance floor
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  13. 7.0 |   Pitchfork

    A bit overworked in ways that undercut its strengths
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  14. 7.0 |   Clash

    Some of the crunching, electronic beats on show here have much in common with today’s chart-shagging R&B heavyweights and, at times, they serve to smooth over the rough, distinctive and hugely endearing edges that were so successful on the debut
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  15. 7.0 |   All Music

    Veers surprisingly close to the kind of streamlined, airbrushed, electro-dance confections that dominate Top 40 pop and R&B circa 2012, albeit generally with enough polyrhythmic (and cross-linguistic) complexity to make genuine crossover success highly implausible at best
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  16. 7.0 |   Uncut

    Eclectic sound from modern Africa. Print edition only

  17. 7.0 |   NME

    A truly global sound
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  18. 6.0 |   The Line Of Best Fit

    The dance beats can feel intrusive, fatiguing, a little samey, and often have the effect of crowding out the duo’s strongest weapon: Esau’s voice
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  19. 6.0 |   The Observer

    The decision to supercharge so many tracks with clubbier beats – in other words, to make them sound a lot more like the rest of the charts – is disappointing
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  20. 6.0 |   Rolling Stone

    MTMTMK dispels doubts, improving on the debut with bigger hooks
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  21. 4.0 |   Slant Magazine

    It's clear that the Very best has Westernized their sound so much that they've become nothing more than a glorified boy band
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  22. 4.0 |   Mojo

    Seems more about Africa's love affair wit US urbana, and so less endearing. Print edition only


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The Very Best: MTMTMK

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