Kiwanuka, Michael

Vinyl Records and Rare LPs:

	Home Again New - LP - 2797133 Sealed, Out Of Print 2012 180gm Original. more
	Home Again New Import - 2797133 Sealed Reissue. Wonderful Debut From The UK Singer/Songwriter. Winner Of The UK's BBC Sound Of 2012 And Has Drawn Comparisons To Bill Withers & Terry Callier. more
	Kiwanuka New - LP - B0031124-01 Sealed 2019 US Original 2LP Gatefold. "Singer And Songwriter Michael Kiwanuka Is Beloved By Progressive Music Fans In His Native U.K. He's Been Nominated For The Mercury Prize For His Previous Albums (Home Again And Love & Hate) And Also Received A Brit Prize Nom For The Latter. Further, His Song "Cold Little Heart" Became A Kind Of International Indie Hit After It Was Chosen As The Theme Song For Hbo's Star-Studded Series Big Little Lies. Born To Ugandan Parents Who Fled During Idi Amin's Reign Of Terror And Settled In Muswell Hill, Kiwanuka Has Had To Fight To Keep His Identity At The Forefront Of The Culture; Numerous Record Execs Tried To Get Him To Dump His Birth Name For One Easier To Market, Resulting In Such A Crisis Of Self-Confidence That He Shelved An Earlier Album Called Night Songs, Recorded As The Initial Follow-Up To Home Again, So He Could Decide If He Even Wanted To Continue Pursuing A Musical Vocation. This Third Album Wears Its Self-titling As A Badge Of Honor, A Statement Of Who Michael Kiwanuka As Artist And Individual Is. Once More Produced By Danger Mouse And Inflo, This 13-Song Set Is A Brave, Colorful Collection That Provides An Exceptionally Well-Rounded Aural Portrait Of Kiwanuka's Massive And Diverse Talent. If One Had To Choose A Genre Umbrella For This Release, The Term "21st Century Psychedelic Soul" Would Fit Better Than Anything Else. The Opening Tune Here, "You Ain't The Problem," Carries The Inspiration Of Curtis Mayfield In Its Rave-Up Chorus, While "Rolling" Melds Sweeping Soul And The Reverbed Guitar Psychedelia Of Arthur Lee And Love. "Hero," At Least Initially, Is A Haunted, Acoustically Driven Folk Ballad: "I Won't Change My Name/No Matter What They Call Me." It Transforms From A First-person Manifesto Into A Trippy Yet Direct Folk-Rock Homage To Fred Hampton, Late President Of The Chicago Chapter Of The Black Panther Party, Who Was Gunned Down By City Police As He Slept. "This Kind Of Love" Is Perhaps The First Tune To Ever Meld Bill Withers' Folksy, Funky Soul To Terry Callier's Singular, Jazzed-Up Take On The Genre. "Hard To Say Goodbye" Is A Weave Of Exotica-Tinged, Pillowy Strings; Pink Floyd-Esque Guitar And Effects Atmospherics; And The Sophisticated Soul Of Stevie Wonder Circa Talking Book. Lyrically, The Album Reveals Kiwanuka At His Most Vulnerable And Strident (No Mean Feat). The Dramatic Nature Of His Songwriting Is Gifted To Listeners In Catchy Earworms, Adventurous Textural Interludes, Provocative Lyrics, And Through An Ambitious Melodic Palette. As Fine As Love & Hate Was -- Worthy Of All Its Accolades -- Kiwanuka Stands Head And Shoulders Above It As A Complex, Communicative, Poetic, And Sometimes Even Profound Collection That Wears Its Heart On Its Sleeve And Its Sophistication In Its Grooves." AMG Review By Thom Jurek. more
	Love & Hate Used - LP - B0024912-01 2016 US 2LP Gatefold Original; This Is The RJ Cut. Vinyl Plays VG++, With Light Run In Noise. Music Dominates. Nice Sheen To Jacket, Hint Of Shelf Wear. Produced By Dangermouse, Inflo & Paul Butler. "On His Ambitious Sophomore Set, London Native Michael Kiwanuka Expands Outward From The Warm Retro-Soul Of 2012 Debut, Home Again. With Its Trio Of Producers And Transatlantic Recording Locales, Love & Hate Arrives With The Weight Of High Expectations. Announcing His Intentions From The Start, Kiwanuka Challenges Listeners With "Cold Little Heart," An Exquisitely Arranged, Ten-minute Opus Of Lush Strings And Elegant Backing Vocals Whose First Line Doesn't Arrive Until The Halfway Point. It's A Homeric Bit Of Heartbroken Prog-Soul That Shows Off Its Creator's Lead Guitar Chops As Much As His Rich, Sandy Voice. Co-produced By Danger Mouse And Inflo, It Also Introduces The Heavy Tonal Palette That Runs Through The Remainder Of The Album's Ten Tracks, Even Those Produced By Kiwanuka's Longtime Collaborator, Paul Butler. Where Home Again Was Ultimately An Intimate And Gentler Affair, Love & Hate Puts Some Distance Between Singer And Audience As He Offers His Worldweary Introspections Against The Framework Of '70s R&B, Funk, And Spaced-Out Rock. The Timely Social Commentary Of Lead Single "Black Man In A White World" Feels Lonesome And Heavy In Spite Of Its Uptempo, Hand-Clapped Rhythm And Nimble Guitar Groove. Throughout The Album, The Space Between Parts Is Somehow Wider, Yet Each Tambourine Hit, Backing Vocal, Or Funky Guitar Lick Feels Darker And More Severe. The Mildly Psychedelic Title Cut Is A Mid-Album Standout Whose Slow-Burning Swagger And Epic Seven-Minute Length Is Countered By The Tight, Punchy "One More Night." Overall, Love & Hate Has Very Little Of The Breezy, Quietly Strummed Charm Of Its Predecessor, But It Represents Serious Growth From An Artist Deliberately Pushing His Boundaries. With This Release, Kiwanuka Has Delivered A Dark, Graceful, And Affecting Artistic Statement That Is Worth The Patience It Takes To Experience It." AMG - Timothy Monger. more