Dave Okumu & the 7 Generations: I Came From Love review – a meditation on Blackness

Known for his 00s band the Invisible and working behind the scenes for everyone from Jessie Ware to Adele, south Londoner Dave Okumu released his solo debut, Knopperz, an instrumental concept album, in 2021. I Came from Love is a more definitive solo statement, boasting vocals, prose readings and illustrious guests such as childhood hero Grace Jones and childhood friend drummer Tom Skinner (Sons of Kemet, the Smile).

Blackness is this impressionistic 15-track LP’s overarching theme, taking in events such as the New Cross fire of 1981 on the hair-raising banger Blood Ah Go Run, as well as inspirational texts such poet Aimé Césaire’s 1939 work Cahier d’un retour au pays natal, read by Anthony Joseph.

Born in Vienna, Okumu’s ancestry is Kenyan; his wide lens takes in the stories, consequences and traumas of the African diaspora in all its forms. And while it’s an emotional listen, I Came From Love is not a difficult record, musically. Jazzy snippet The Struggle starts as a voice note about how hard it is to articulate things when you don’t have control of a narrative. Get Out is a stark, Prince-ish funk track; Eyes on Me is a pop tune about the distorting structures of racism; and Prison invites listeners to shake off their shackles to a bluesy groove.