The Strange One

A fiery fuzz guitar solo, reggaeton bridge, vocals switching between Spanish and English, searing violins and a constant hip-hop/cumbia beat are all present and correct on ‘Lit Up!’, the opening track of MNGWA's debut. This eight-piece from Vancouver are not subtle, but in the many musical fragments and ideas that make up each of the eight tracks here, they show a real clarity in song craft and production, which allows for their fusion of Latin, Middle Eastern, rock and hip-hop elements to cohere remarkably well.

‘( ( Sun ) )’ shows them at their most sprightly, switching between a Caribbean dub-favoured verse and punchy chorus, which never tires over its eight-plus minute length as different instruments come and go, including the marvellously atmospheric Vietnamese dàn bau (zither). ‘Raising Morning’ maybe even tops it for euphoria thanks to a beatific organ riff, while ‘Curandero’ shows two sides to the coin with a sweetly beautiful first half that erupts into horns, pounding drums, bass and a Middle Eastern favour courtesy of the darbuka. The Strange One is a hugely promising debut, only let down by a few tracks that don't live up to the level MNGWA have set themselves at their most rousing.