Album Review: Tembalami - The Fight

Tembalami has indeed grown as a gospel artist over the years. He is one of the best when it comes to modern contemporary gospel, fusing various modern elements to make his music more relate-able to a lot of Zimbos especially the youthful masses.

Personally became a huge fan of Tembalami when he released the Brighter Days album in 2011, the album spoke to me and even up to this day I still love listening to the album, tracks such as Brighter Days and Famba NaJesu gave me strength & hope on many days. He followed Brighter Days with a much more impressive Faith Aid Kit in 2013 which introduced us to a more refined and polished Tembalami, it was a commercial success (had tracks in most of the gospel charts on urban radio stations) and elevated him into the best modern contemporary gospel artist in the country. Faith Aid Kit  also contains probably my favourite track from Tembalami; Mhanya.....ohhh the track is my go to motivational song anyday. He followed it with the Singles Remixes and Acoustic Sessions which contained the superb Bayete Remix. A year later he released a live project titled Ministry of Worship which contained a number of tracks he has released before but with that added live show touch and magic. 

On most days Faith Aid Kit is my favourite project from Tembalami but that live show/concert magic on the Ministry Of Works project is hard to resist. A new album is now upon us and cannot wait to see where it will fit among his previous albums, will it be my new favourite or it's at the other end. On this album Tembalami again worked with Legendary producer MacDee whom he has been working with since his Brighter Days, that alone had me expecting a  lot.

The album contains 12 tracks and as usual will be doing my track by track review.

1. Kure

On the opening track of the album Tembalami is saying we will go far with this God, he has been there since the beginning of time and he will be remain forever. He will light your path in darkness and give you strength when you're feeling weak. They went for a pop rock kind of layout and it's sounding good. Tembalami showed he also can do baritone quite well with a solid performance on this track, on my first listen thought he featured another artist.

2. Sawa (feat Evelyn Wanjiru)

Did a review of this track when it was released last year and you can read the review here: Sawa Track Review

3.I'm A Winner

This is a song of declaration, as a believer one must believe that they are a winner for you have a big God besides you. No-one can bring you down or shake you down because the Lord fights for his children. The production is done quite well, the arrangement and overall feel is distinctly MacDee, the layout is similar to a lot of the other tracks he has produced. Tembalami delivered a commendable performance, the backing vocalists delivered a strong and solid performance.

4. Sekerera

Like Sawa this track was also released last year. Tembalami went for this Kirk Franklin kind of feel good gospel on this jam and he pulled it off quite well, even the visuals were also well made. On this track Tembalami is just urging you to put your trust and faith in the Lord because when you have the Lord you have everything you need, so smile laugh for the Lord is with you, he will turn darkness into light, his joy is your strength. The production is done well and Tembalami delivered a lovely performance. 

5. I Need You
On this track Tembalami is saying Lord I Need You in my life for I am nothing without you. Its a track one sings when they realize how vulnerable and powerless they are without the Lord in their life. The production is done quite well, its another distinctly MacDee production. Tembalami delivered quite a good performance.

6. Grace Anthem

This track is about lifting up your faith and giving yourself unto the Lord for you need his presence and grace in your life. This is one of those tracks which show that worship music does not need to have a slow tempo all the time. Its one of those tracks whereby they make you see how blessed you are and you just end up saying "Thank You Lord", it leads you into a worship mood with a big smile of your face.The production is done very well, the vocal performances are good. Lovely song. 

7. Nyasha Dzenyu

This track is taken from Psalms 100 verse 5 which says;"For the Lord is Good and his love endures forever...". For it is by his grace that you are where you are today, so one needs to thank the Lord and worship him for such unmerited favour. The production is done very well, love the keyboard. Both Tembalami and the backing vocalists delivered solid performances, it's a song that will get you into an exalting mood. Arguably my favourite track on the album.

8. Torumbidza
For some reason expected this to be a praise song but I was very wrong it's actually a very lovely worship song, another track that leads you into worship with a smile on your face. It a track about exalting and saying praises unto the Lord, telling him that you are Great and Mighty.  The production is done well and helps bring out the "happy worship" vibe in a very lovely way. Tembalami was very good on the vocals, delivering a passionate and lovely performance. 

9. Usadzikisirwe (feat Kuduboy)
As believers one of the most important things we must do is giving hope to others, inspiring & motivating them to overcome their situations. On this track Tembalami & Kuduboy are just urging those who feel like giving up to remain focused on their dreams/targets and spread their wings so they can fly the highest. They went for a reggae kind of arrangement on this album and they did a good job on that. The two artists delivered good performances, complementing each other very well.

10. Dzingori Nyasha

Tembalami continues on the grace theme on this track, where he is saying I trust in the Lord, for it is not by my strength that I have achieved what I have achieved but its all because of the grace of God, it gives him confidence in whatever situation he faces. In terms of production the track is sounding a bit muffled, not as clear or punchy as the others (maybe its the copy I heard) and that is quite a letdown because the instrumental arrangement was done very very well, the guitar work and overall feel is all on point. The vocals are also structured well, the backing vocalists again are on point, Tembalami also delivered a solid performance, it's a track that you will be singing along to in no time. Had the track been mastered like the other track It would be among my top tracks from the album.

11. Vhangeri (feat Wellington Kwenda & Tapiwa Masara)

This is another tack that was released last year it's taken from a well known loved popular hymn which talks about preaching the gospel of God to all the corners of the world. They added some flesh to make the song different and it works quite well. The artists delivered some good and energetic performances, with Big Welly in the mix you know there will a lot of energy. The production is done very well and the guitar work is my favourite part of the track, especially that part from 03:16-03:38. 

12. Dairai

This is a very catchy track, the progression of the instrumental will get you nodding or tapping your feet to the beat. The overall production is done well, the vocal performance is also done well. The Lord is looking for those who worship him in spirit and truth so Tembalami is urging believer to come out and testify about how awesome this God is. Testimonies help in giving others strength so as believers we must not be shy to talk about our God. 

Stream the album: The Fight on Spotify
Buy the album: The Fight in CD Baby

So after listening to the album as much as I can I have to say this is quite a solid project, the production is  done well except on Dzingori Nyasha where it not up to par. As expected from Tembalami the album has a modern feel to it the instrumental arrangements are done very well, they explored many genres and structures which make the album refreshing to listen to.

The themes are what you would expect from a gospel album. Tembalami kept the choice of words simple which  makes it easier for fans to comprehend and sing along to the tracks. However the biggest complaint I have of the album is that the title is misleading, have tried to find the link between the title (The Fight) and the themes tackled and have failed to find any. Had this album been named Grace, The Grace...etc it would have been a more fitting title. 

In terms of vocal performances Tembalami did a good job throughout the album delivering strong and passionate performances when required. The artists who were featured all did their jobs well, Welly delivered an energetic performance as expected, Kuduboy, Evelyn Wanjiru and Kuda Masara all delivered good performances. Lastly the backing vocals were superb delivering on point performances whenever they were called upon. 

In conclusion this is quite a solid project from Tembalami, I cannot say it's his best ever but it does not disappoint either. It's quite a balanced album, there is no one track that is way better than the others, you just let the album play without the need to skip to a certain song, gospel fans will be pleased with this project.  I recommend this album.

My Overall Rating: A,B,C,Poor.

What are your thoughts on the album???

Proud_Zimbo