Closer to Home comes at a season in Sibusiso Mash Mashloane’s career where he wants to zoom into his social and musical identity. Being born in Mpumalanga Province, surrounded by Ndebele, Pedi and Swazi people and later moving to KwaZulu Natal, he observed that each society breathes its own character: “If that character is not embraced the significance of being part of it, is lost” says Mashiloane.
All the cultures he experienced have their own transitional, cultural practices, which gives birth to new societies of mixed cultures and traditions. You can clearly hear this in his album “Closer To Home”, which is a culmination of all the musical dialects and the characteristics of the communities he has stayed and shared with. It is however not a complete reflection, but a serious starting point, which he trusts to attain a better understanding and revelations through his studies and musical encounters.
About the choice of musicians that contributed to this music he says “these musicians all take pride in their identity and are not only driven by their music’s skill impressions but also by relevancy and accuracy.”
