340ml

The southern African four-member group 340ml is currently based in Johannesburg but has its roots firmly planted in Mozambique. The release of their first album in 2003 earned them critical praise, and opened the doors to a wide range of public performances. Titled Moving, the album was widely praised for ots effortless evocateveness and resonance which casts a musical glow that speaks of hazy beach sunsets, languid afternoons and blissed out summer fun.  in 2007, 340ml released their second album, called Sorry for the Delay.

According to the band members, 340ml is not only about the slow jam.  Paulo Jorge Chibanga  (drums), Rui Soeiro (bass), Tiago Correia Paulo (guitar) and Pedro da Silva Pinto (vocals, sampler) are all skilled musicians with an eclectic approach to playing that makes for compelling listening. It’s not for nothing that Paulo and Tiago are an integral part of the off-kilter, jazz-inflected hip-hop created by Tumi and the Volume.

Part of 340ml’s ability to create music that’s fresher than an early morning sea breeze comes from their collective youth, spent in Maputo where a sure-footed belief in their ability to be something special threads through their early lives. An organic musical influence on 340ml’s members is unquestionably Latin music. “Here in South Africa it’s seen as something exotic but at home it’s everyday stuff,” says Tiago. “It’s part of everyday life. I mean if someone is listening to music in Maputo they don’t do it passively - even if they are not a musician they will be drumming on the table with their hands.” Traditional Mozambican music (“Marrabenta”) is another influence - although subtle. “For me, Mozambican music is very folk,” says Paulo. “It’s about the marimba and the acoustic guitar - although groups like Kapa Dech have taken it to more an Afro-jazz level.”

It was an inspired choice when the group - after many false-starts - took its name from the ubiquitous measurement on beverage cans, when it finally formalized itself in 2000! But it’s the music that really speaks - as Moving reveals. The album was co-produced by the popular Jazzworx production team and is, in parts, dub, reggae, jazz, Brazilian, rock and more (“just call it southern African contemporary,” says Paulo) and it’s bound to get 340ml noticed nationally, if not globally.