This lush but elusive record promises depth for ambient heads, but might feel too little too late for fans of kwes.’ earlier work.
Kwesi Sey came up almost two decades ago among the loose London scene that always seemed to centre on Mica Levi: their collaborative mixtapes as Kwesachu featuring a range of local cult heroes like Ghostpoet and Tirzah. Sey eventually became a prolific producer, working with everyone from Bobby Womack to Solange.
In a career thick with such backseat collaborations, it’s easy to miss the thin stream of solo records Sey has released as kwes. But 2012’s Meantime EP and 2013’s ilp. were both singular — notable not only for Sey’s trippy, warped productions but also his quavering, almost childish vocals.