With Broken Shoes, Soweto steps beyond mere genre homage, animating the deep traditions of South African jazz-funk with a distinctive energy that eschews nostalgia for lived immediacy. The reissue, pressed by We Are Busy Bodies, is more than a historical preservation—it marks a re-engagement with the spirit of musical dialogue, the LP carrying forward the insistent rhythms and unguarded improvisations that originally set it apart. These are songs constructed from the ground up, where every chord progression and horn figure seems shaped by the land’s dust and optimism.
A notable element throughout Broken Shoes is the attention to interplay and ensemble coherence. Rather than foregrounding soloists, the album insists on a collective voice, shimmering with brass exchanges, guitar funkiness, and persistent, danceable bass lines. Listeners familiar with the township jazz idiom will recognize affectionate nods to the past, yet the record remains deeply present—never content to simply replicate, but employing familiar motifs as signals for new conversations. The dance between tradition and freshness is apparent in each track’s arrangement, revealing a band more concerned with communal pulse than virtuosic display.
The visual and physical aspects further enhance the listening experience; crisp reissue packaging and remastered sound serve both longstanding aficionados and newcomers, inviting renewed appreciation without indulging in excessive retrospection. The LP pulses with affirmation but never succumbs to self-congratulation; each side stands as testament to the band’s ability to fuse social context and creative ambition. Broken Shoes ultimately exemplifies how jazz’s enduring power lies not just in innovation, but in the humility of revisiting and reinterpreting. Here, Soweto generously shares a piece of musical heritage—unvarnished, immediate, and true to its lived context.
