Twin sister indie-soul outfit Ibeyi has returned with their latest single, “Made Of Gold”, featuring Coventry rapper Pa Salieu.
Produced by XL Recordings boss Richard Russell, the Afro-French Cuban duo’s latest track is a luxurious and cinematic belter, featuring a cold, passive instrumental that doubles as an echo chamber to focus the listener’s attention on the sisters’ empowering, soul-laden vocals. Halfway through, Pa Salieu jumps in and delivers a short but sharp verse coded with his signature bravado and grandeur.
“The first song we produced in the studio was ‘Made Of Gold’,” Ibeyi said in a statement. “Whilst we were creating the layers of the backing vocals, we could feel that we were making contact with our ancestors, that what we were recording was calling on the brujas and our ancestors for their ancient knowledge.”
They added: “‘Made Of Gold’ is about connecting to our ancestors’ knowledge, to the truths of the past and the power of the ancient. The line is not broken, nor is it lost. Protected by these spells, our third album will see us conveying our reconnection to that power and channelling that magic into our new music.”
The Daniel Sannwald-directed visuals are a colourful, psychedelic epic that revels in historic world culture and dizzying, trip-worthy set-pieces. Serving as the lead single from Ibeyi’s upcoming, as-yet-untitled third album, we expect to hear more from the sisters soon.
Peep the “Made Of Gold” video above and be sure to add the song to your playlists.
