Vhunze Moto

On this album, his third released in the West by Putumayo, the gruff-voiced Zimbabwean singer-composer Oliver Mtukudzi and his band have lovingly fashioned another collection of hymnlike, honeyed harmonies and catchy percussive grooves. The ambiance is unaffected, wide open, and sunny with precious little obvious tweaking, as though the musicians were recorded at a live gig or captured playing for their own pleasure during a sound check. Mtukudzi's bell-like guitar leaps through the mix, rippling with iridescence like a silver fish in a noonday stream. His mature output continues to display a close kinship with other southern African traditions, especially mbaquanga, but the rhythms seem relaxed and stress-free when compared to the syncopated slap and sucking undertow that characterizes most Zulu-derived pop styles. However, the third track, "Ziva Nguva," cancels out previous impressions with an aggressive minor-key hook and relentless call-and-response vocals. --Christina Roden