Rating: NNNN
Those who figured Geoffrey Oryema was going to stick to his Ugandan roots and stereotypical “world music” paradigm forever will be pleasantly shocked by Words, a striking flight into pop rock with unperturbed French elegance and a level of sincerity hard to find in North America. For the latter reason, even misguidedly corny lyrics like “Have you ever felt the bliss, the bliss of a butterfly kiss?” are so charmingly earnest they’re forgivable. Over a backbone of African percussion, sweeps of electronic production, clean riffs and exotic poetry make for a rich, wise and soothing listen. This would be good for you.
