Antibalas - Hourglass (2025)

The album Hourglass marks the band Antibalas' return to instrumental music, contrasting with their previous works where lyrics addressed urgent social and political topics such as patriarchy, climate change, militarism, oligarchy, and white ethnonationalism. Co-producer/founder Martín Perna explains that in this album, the group uses melody and rhythm to universally express emotions and rearticulate these themes, making them accessible to listeners regardless of their language. Hourglass features compositions from current and emeritus members of the group and showcases a variety of styles: the title track begins with a tenor saxophone solo and moves into a 12/8 groove, "Lo-Life" demonstrates the group's ability to swing, reminiscent of Machito or 70s Ghanaian dance bands, while tracks like "Solace," "Escape," and "La Ceiba" pay homage to classic Lagos afrobeat with a contemporary "Brooklyn accent." The album concludes with "Oasis," described as a step into psychedelic funk.

Tracklist:
1-1 Antibalas - Solace [5:20]
1-2 Antibalas - Lo Life [6:20]
1-3 Antibalas - Escape [6:55]
1-4 Antibalas - Hourglass [6:45]
1-5 Antibalas - La Ceiba [6:07]
1-6 Antibalas - Oasis [6:02]