Lekan Babaloa

Xhosa Cole: Ibeji

by Karl Ackermann
November 13, 2022

Few places on the global jazz scene are enjoying the enthusiastic resurgence of the genre more than the UK. Names that are becoming more familiar—Binker Golding, Nubya Garcia, Idris Rahman, Shabaka Hutchings and others—have triggered something of a youth movement. Emerging in that group is yet another top-notch saxophonist, Xhosa Cole. Cole's sophomore release, Ibeji is full of terrific music, wrapped in a missed opportunity. Ibeji takes its name from the Yoruba religion, and features six percussionists individually ...