Kwashibu Area Band's Meditative Turn

Kwashibu Area Band released Love Warrior's Anthem on Soundway Records in August, marking a shift toward something softer and more meditative than their previous work. Co-led by multi-instrumentalist Kwame Yeboah and saxophonist Ben Abarbanel-Wolff since 2014, the band backed Ghanaian legend Pat Thomas on two albums for Strut and played more than 250 shows across Europe and Africa.

Now they're moving forward without Thomas's voice, creating groove music that's subtle, spacious, and grounded—stretching highlife just far enough to let the light in. It's a different proposition: the record doesn't announce itself, it settles in. For those who followed their work with Thomas, this is a chance to hear what the band sounds like when they step out from behind a legend.