Vhunze Moto
On this album, his third released in the West by Putumayo, the  gruff-voiced Zimbabwean singer-composerOliver Mtukudziand his  band have lovingly fashioned another collection of hymnlike, honeyed harmonies  and catchy percussive grooves. The ambiance is unaffected, wide open, and sunny  with precious little obvious tweaking, as though the musicians were recorded at  a live gig or captured playing for their own pleasure during a sound check.  Mtukudzi's bell-like guitar leaps through the mix, rippling with iridescence  like a silver fish in a noonday stream. His mature output continues to display a  close kinship with other southern African traditions, especiallymbaquanga, but the rhythms seem relaxed and stress-free when compared to  the syncopated slap and sucking undertow that characterizes most Zulu-derived  pop styles. However, the third track, "Ziva Nguva," cancels out previous  impressions with an aggressive minor-key hook and relentless call-and-response  vocals.--Christina Roden