Single Review: E Kura

It did not take long for me to fall in love with this song, probably the first 30 seconds I guess, as there is something about it which grabs hold the listener, puts them in a safe place, and lets the singer bare their soul. Soul, yes, this is full of it in a musical sense as well as an emotional one, and when I discovered he was singing about the upcoming birth of his first daughter, whether he would be a good father, and the need to reconnect to his Maori heritage it made a great deal of sense. Part of that reconnection was to write the song in Te Reo, and for that he needed some assistance so asked his cousins Stephanie Fong and Dr Jennifer Martin to help. Ed says, “Writing a song in Te Reo with whanau is one of the most uplifting and humbling experiences of my musical journey so far. I searched the piano for inspiration while we spoke of childhood memories. Three hours later we had a finished song.”

I was not surprised to see that Ed Waaka has worked with Troy Kingi in the past, as there are definite elements here which are reminiscent of his slower ballads, but I did not expect to be reminded so much of Aro given they are a male/female duo, but the harmonies are sheer delight. There is so much space here, so much restrained power, all of which combine with the emotions pouring out which make this something very magical indeed as we are taken away from our daily existence to a very special place. Play this on headphones, preferably on repeat, and feel the stress of daily life just wash away as Ed connects not only with his unborn child and his heritage, but to every single one of us.