Review: Nadia McAnuff & The Ligerians - Shelter From The Storm

Review

Album Review: Nadia McAnuff & The Ligerians - Shelter From The Storm

06/07/2024

Nadia McAnuff’s first, full solo album with the Ligerians is an exquisite body of work that, as the artist herself hoped when she spoke to Reggaeville, will let you find your “happy home”.

Shelter From The Storm, released via SoulNurse Records, is an overly roots album but interspersed with other genres, too. It should be noted that Laurent “Tippy I” Alfred’s mastering is superb: elevating each track while giving the album an overall classic sound from the heyday of roots.

Love Divine feels overly dub with its heavy, imposing bassline as McAnuff expresses praises to Jah, while So Jah Seh changes tack with its whining guitars and its narrative around following a righteous path. But Freedom Of Peace switches things up, drawing Afrobeats inspiration with its stuttering drum lines and regal horns – calling for protection of civil liberties.

Know Who is a real roots throw-back, with the keys’ engineering designed to feel analogue and some delicious work on the guitar. McAnuff’s calling out of the "wolves in sheep’s clothing”’ who bastardise Rastafari is strong, too. Holy winds the pace back with some melancholy minor key vibes and a meandering bass, and an equally melancholy narrative around false prophets.

From nowhere, steppers then appears with Waiting Room and its frantic drum line. McAnuff has built a sharp narrative around passiveness and spiritual indifference versus Babylon’s mendacity, too. Shelter feels smoother than previous tracks: soul vibes crossed with stark dub breaks, with Jah being praised once more. Fade Away mixes the album up again, leaning heavier into dub but with RnB vibes across the vocals and as McAnuff says “peace is the only solution”, as she implores peaceful resistance and unity against the system.

Sorry is a beautiful, fluid affair with distinctly funky soul undertones across roots overtones and mid-range electronic vibes across the synths and dub engineering. McAnuff weaves a narrative around personal integrity and faith being cemented by music, perfectly.

Shelter From The Storm concludes with Yes We featuring YLSam (her son Samuel, an artist in his own right). The track leans heavily into hip hop across the drums while keeping some roots vibes across instruments like the keys, almost revival reggae. There’s a strong narrative, too, around standing firm against those who seek to divide us.

McAnuff is the consummate jazz-inspired roots vocalist, weaving intricate melodies and complex rhythmic patterns across performances which are filled with nuanced and expressive interpretations. The Ligerians are highly accomplished and have a marvellous synergy across their performances, both internally and with McAnuff, too.

Overall, Shelter From The Storm is a tour de force from McAnuff and the Ligerians. Musically complex but still infinitely listenable, it represents the pinnacle of her already long career, and should be viewed as a classic in the making.