Kaba review: Camidoh’s vain take on the question of love

29 Jul 2022 - 15:26

Published under the Creative Commons Licence

In the years preceding his TikTok hit ‘Sugarcane’, Camidoh’s ingenuity seemed obscure to audiences beyond his native Ghana, even if his wide-ranging flair has never been in doubt. The song, whose remix guests King Promise, Mayorkun and Darkoo, ushered in a watershed moment for Camidoh, who is blooming as an upcoming paragon of Afropop delight.

Camidoh.

Camidoh continues to render an impressive account of his musicianship with the track's successor ‘Kaba’.

Released today and produced by UglyxTough, ‘Kaba’ arrives on a giddier bpm, but retains the same functional composition and delightful bounce that, in some manner, finds its author modernising highlife. It is the sentiment of local industry watchers, that all new music from these parts must have highlife as a fulcrum, for it to be led forward. And so, ‘Kaba’ boasts syncopated drums, stem-winding percussion work and lush guitar licks that characterise highlife, but also feels trendy in its finish.

‘Kaba’ translates from Ewe as ‘expeditiously’. It finds Camidoh chewing on the place of money in romantic affairs. Every few months, this subject raises its head within pop circles here, and while it fuels spirited arguments, the conclusion is often that the two go hand in hand. Camidoh concedes this to a love interest off the bat: “I no fit to give you just love”, he sings, before plunging fully into the meaningless love promises that have perpetually coloured pop.

But the cleverness of ‘Kaba’ is especially apparent in the record’s vocal form than in its lyrics. Its festive spirit and charismatic chanting suggest that it aims for the dancefloor first, before heading anywhere else. Camidoh’s voice is delicately rich (or richly delicate) in a very R&B way, thus disarming and gratifying. Again, though it has been his template since Contingency Plan, his 2020 debut EP, the artist’s unique tapestry of local dialects and lingua franca constitutes some of the strongest arguments about language as secondary to a song’s international appeal.

At points in his verses and in the song's pre-hook, Camidoh employs a staccato-style articulation that exposes his subtle rap inspirations. It invokes curiosity at the very least and lingering excitement once properly registered in its listener's mind.

Add this to adornments like cheery harmonisation and zesty ad-libbing, and the result is a boundless aural delight that habitually sets him up for viral success.

If there’s any additional observation about the Camidoh style, it is the fact that ‘Kaba’ illustrates further that its author, who is unlimited in his pop experimentations, has hardly reached the end of his sonic adventures.

Stream ‘Kaba’ here.