Akasic Record is for the most part, a political statement set to a mix of African and Euro-funk beats. The brain-child of Warrick Sony, Kalahari Surfers has a reputation for making political statements that ranges back to the group's inception in the 1980's. This album is no exception. The title of this album refers to a massive record of all that is and all that will come to be. Warrick Sony strives to make this album a record akin to the Hindu Akasic Records (where all records of the universes; events, beings, their feelings and actions have been recorded). "You are holding a record of all events, actions, thoughts, and feelings that have ever occurred or will ever occur. These recordings come from the earth-ether, music from the memory of what was, what is and what will be, impossible dance music from a confused planet." - Warrick Sony
The musical rhythms are hypnotic and inviting. You'll find yourself bobbing your head to the beats. Describing the lyrics is a tad tricky. Most are in another language and so the meaning is lost among many a listener who does not speak Himba or Xhosa. Luckily, a translation of these lyrics can be found in the CD booklet insert. There are eerily disturbing tracks like 9866 in which we overhear a man attempting to make what seems to be a phone call. He repeats the numbers 9866 as he believes he may have dialed incorrectly. The numbers 9866 are repeated several times in a distorted fashion, followed by a female voice saying, "He has a gun you know." Then we hear the distinct sound of a gunshot. The end of the song speaks about getting too close to the truth.
Overall, the music in Akasic Record is fairly enjoyable, at times, even soothing. Unfortunately, I fear that the lyrics depicting the struggle and strife of the African people will be lost on the average listener. I think fans of euro-funk will find this CD extremely entertaining. Musically speaking, I would tend to agree with them. Lyrically speaking, I think Akasic Record is not on par with Kalahari Sufers' other works such as those featured in Kalahari Surfers Volume 1 and 2: 1985 -1990. This album seems to be lacking when you read the lyrics of the songs included in that album. I'm not going to use this CD as a coaster, but I'm not going to be keeping it in the CD wallet I carry around either. It will probably sit on a shelf in my entertainment center gathering dust until I feel like listening to some funky beats.
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