Reviewed by Paul Poulton

It's not surprising Honoray's voice sounds distinctly African because he was born in Rwanda. He made his way to England and enrolled at the Nexus music college; two years later with a head full of Nexus know-how he was ready to hit us with his debut album. It has to be said there are some fine ideas on here, a number of the songs start with engaging parts swirling around threatening to lodge in the listeners head for at least a few days. The sugar coating looks colourful but it's not long before you realise that a bit more cake is needed beneath the icing. Honoray's voice needs to stamp its authority on the proceedings. He has some valid things to say but is not helped by the thin tone of the recording, the grooves need beefing up, and if I could say, speeding up, filling up and fattening up. Radio 1xtra DJ Edu with his penchant for African hip-hop may be interested in Honoray's music, but I can't help feeling that this is not the album to get the airplay.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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