Sika

Long gone are the days when Arthur Mafokate used to be the renowned King of Kwaito. Now he is fast becoming one of the biggest flops in Kwaito music.

His time has come and gone, as age is not the only thing he's struggling to come to terms with, but also the fact that there isn't much of a market left for him to please.

It's no big surprise really; with the materialisation of hot Kwaito stars such as Brown Dash and Mzekezeke around he doesn't really stand much of a chance.

"Bara Boom Bara Bang!" are the opening words in Arthur's new album 'Sika'. Who in their right minds would sing about "cutting a cake" for an almost five-minute song? His opening song is the very controversial 'Sika Lekhekhe' (featuring Thousand), which directly translates to 'Cut This Cake'.

The song has made headlines in the local Sunday tabloids because of its allegedly sexually explicit lyrics.

Arthur has managed to clinch a very talented Thiwe whom he features on almost every track in the album — and she, really, is the star of the show here. The girl is good and here's hoping she does a whole lot more than back up poor tired Arthur.

She's outstanding on 'Natural Woman' both the second track and the deep house version which is the 11th track on the album.

In track three, 'Bhek Indoda' Arthur uses his signature style of throwing together catchy tunes against the backdrop of playful children shrilling in chorus. It works, and this track might even be popular for a while.

In 'Oxam' he goes back to his roots with the house-influenced remix of the traditional song, also featuring Thiwe.

I have to give Arthur some props for always coming up with songs with killer dance beats and great kiddie themes.

But be warned: If it's musical substance you're into don't even bother picking this up.

But, if you're into things of the moment, then listen to this for the next month or so. After that you probably won't even remember what the title of the album was.