On his first album for the German MPS label, Nicola Conte channels the customary feel-good retro stylings that we’ve come to expect from the Italian DJ, producer, guitarist and bandleader as heard on previous albums such as Free Souls and Love & Revolution. Recorded in Bari, Italy and Johannesburg, South Africa, the album's core sound is provided by Conte's live band, Spiritual Galaxy, which includes international stars such as Italian trombonist Gianluca Petrella (twice named ‘Best Emerging Artist’ by DownBeat magazine), Swedish tenor saxophonist Magnus Lindgren, and Finnish drummer Teppo Mäkynen. The stellar line-up also includes two up-and-coming US stars, alto saxist Logan Richardson and trumpeter Theo Croker. With its looping electric-guitar riff, the hypnotic, incantatory quality of ‘Uhuru Na Umoja’, affectingly sung by vocalists Bridgette Amofah and Carolina Bubbico, immediately draws you into the album's ravishing palette of sound. Other highlights include an entrancing guest appearance by Zara McFarlane, whose beautiful timbre lights up ‘Ogun’, the richly detailed arrangement and propulsive groove of ‘Cosmic Peace’, plus the joyous ‘Essence of the Sun’, movingly sung by the South African vocalist Zoë Modiga, who also impresses on the title-track.