Subconsciously is Afro-House’s Magnum Opus

The veteran DJ and producer utilizes some of the best musicians from around the world on his latest career-defining album.

IEYL’s February 2021 Album of the Month: Subconsciously by Black Coffee

Background

Nkosinathi Maphumulo, a.k.a. Black Coffee grew up in the small township community of Umlazi, South Africa in the late 1970’s. At 8, Maphumulo’s parent’s divorced and he and his siblings moved to the rural township of Ngangelizwe in the Eastern Cape providence to live with their grandmother. Before and after school Maphumulo would milk his grandmothers’ cows and on the weekend’s he would look after them for longer periods of time. During these moments Maphumulo would day dream about exploring the greater world and making an impact on millions of people. At the time, he didn’t know what he wanted to do, but he knew he didn’t belong in that small farm town.

His musical journey began when he was a young teenager. Friends and cousins of his would come to his grandmother’s house to recruit him to do events in town. With their newly acquired sound system, they would play at graduation parties and beauty pageants. During these trips Maphumulo realized he had an ear for DJing and a natural ability to sonically connect with audiences. He took his innate skills and passion for music into university where he studied jazz at Technikon Natal (a.k.a Durban Univrsity of Technology). In college he formed an Afro-pop group and made some music of his own on the side. After countless breaks like making it on to the DJ at Work album, getting selected to participate in the Red Bull Music Academy, and creating his own record company, Black Coffee came into his own within the South African music scene.

Since his self titled debut in 2005 Black Coffee’s tireless work ethic and endless DJing gig’s propelled him from standout regional talent to international superstar. His fan base in Europe and performances at places like the Sonar Festival in Barcelona made him a respectable talent in the international house scene. His live performance and subsequent album for Africa Rising made him a household name in South Africa. The 24 piece orchestra demonstrated his high-level musicality and breadth of experience. In 2015, Black Coffee embarked on his first world tour. A lot of the love and attention he acquired since this world tour influenced Subconsciously’s global sound and international collaborations. With Subconsciously Black Coffee intended to prove that music should “unite us under one universal language”. Black Coffee integrated as many additional vocalists, producers, and writers as he could to elevate the songs to a new place where they would transcend genres and convey a deeply human message.

Long Luscious Cinematic Tunes

For decades, Black Coffee was known for his unique afro-house sound. On Subconsciously Coffee continues to marry dance music with the polyrhythms of South Africa. Every song on this album is 5–7 minutes of luscious cinematic sound. Each song has its unique approach to Afro-house and integrates other genres into its myriad and eclectic world. For instance, on “SBCNCSLY”, house rhythm’s are matched by fat electronic drums. These two elements are complemented by skittering synths. On “Flava”, we get some house drums and a thrilling amount of horns. Overall, the song’s menacing beat creates an excellent background for cool rap-sing vocals by Una Rams and additional DJ stop-and-go improvisations. Coffee’s production by committee style even met the funk-induced keys and flairs of Pharrell on the album highlight, “Missed Calls”. On here, the beat periodically breaks to these sprinkling synths and light afrobeat drums. The production’s cathartic appeal is met by Jozzy’s heart-revealing verses. These songs move at their own pace and need to be experienced. They feel like the soundtrack to outdoor festivals under the dark starlit sky.

Singers’ Dreamy Cadence and Exasperated Energy

On Subconsciously, each song features a different set of artists who sing about a variety of love-soaked topics. Their performances are backdropped by these twilight feeling beats and dreamy soundscapes. Its beautiful to hear each artist bring their own style to the afro-house giant’s world. These singers are from everywhere from Australia, to England, Nigeria, Greece, and the United States. The R&B star, Celeste, for example, gives a majestic and emotive vocal performance on the invigorating electronic-based tune “Ready For You”. The song sounds like a night club filled with undeniable joy and ecstasy. Contrastingly, on the smooth and mellow “Wish You Were Here” Msaki gives a soulful delivery underneath looming dark chords and chiming keys. While there doesn’t seem to be much love remaining for Msaki, Cassie has time to waste on the airy and vibrant jam, “Time”. The young veteran R&B singer shows off her underrated range and passion across this fun tune. As well as Cassie sings her hear out on the outro of this track Usher takes things to the next level on the single “LaLaLa”. Despite his legendary status in pop music he sounds refreshingly new and modern on this groovy song. As fans have come to expect, Usher can create a danceable banger in his sleep. Black Coffee’s ability to highlight Usher’s vocal dexterity and create such a rhythmic and cascading beat is something to cherish. Throughout this album the guest singers bring their A-game and wear their hearts of their sleeves.

Articulating Our Subconscious Connection

This album is a masterclass in dynamic house and genre-bending electronic music. Black Coffee performed more like a composer than a producer for this project. In fact, many of the artists he influenced through out his career contributed to the album. For example, DJ Angelo, former supporting act for Black Coffee, contributes to the spacey and synthesized sound of album-opener “Lost”. This African-based album sounds like a more authentic version of Beyoncé’s The Lion King: The Gift Album. It maintains it’s worldly appeal while keeping its roots in the polyrhythms of South African house music. His decades of touring, DJ’ing, and producing experience informs his collaborative style and opinions about human connectivity. Subconsciously fantastically articulates our subconscious connections. Through themes of infatuation, lust, fear, and risk-taking Black Coffee expresses our innate and common emotions. As powerful and ever-present borders are, and quarantine continues to be, they can’t keep our commonalities apart. Subconsciously does a great job at reminding us about our true inner bonds.

Enjoy this read? Be sure to follow Modern Music Analysis, check us out below! We are also available on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!