K toz

AMG Review of K toz

Mark Romano
All Music Guide

K toz features Kassav''s zouk founding fathers, Georges Decimus and Jacob Desvarieux, plus all the mainstays except Patrick Saint-Eloi. As usual, the production is first rate. The enormous lineup of Antillean and African churn out tremendous torque here nevertheless. There's also plenty of pulverizing percussion and swing for dancers. Kassav' always manages to reconnect with its drumming roots, gwo ka and zouk's precursor, cadence. They also deftly inject touches of creolized European dance rhythms into the pot. The mix of all these styles and many more went into creating the primal zouk wave. Kassav' is the best at reaffirming all these musical currents that go into the fine mix that is zouk par excellence. The different vocalists' timbre always give Kassav' albums varied textures and feelings. This album doesn't take a allad breather until the ninth track. The founding fathers can still kick it, and kick they do after 25 or so releases. Highly recommended.