Moonchild Sanelly has her own lane. With 2015’s ‘Rabulapha!’ and 2022’s ‘Phases’ her “futuristic ghetto funk” bridged the gap between sounding like it’s come from 50 years in the future while remaining rooted 50 years in the past. With ‘Full Moon’ she displays her whole self in a body of work that’s wholly unapologetic without always nailing the fizz and fire of her best music.
“‘Full Moon’ is me, lit up in my entirety,” the South African artist said of the album when it was announced. Indeed, symbolism has been rife throughout Sanelly’s career, with the title of her last album existing to showcase her many different styles and tastes.
It stands to reason, then, that ‘Full Moon’ should be an album driven by cohesion and a sense that everything’s about to come together in one place. It almost works out that way.
First, let’s talk about the good. Scrambled Eggs kicks things off in a forceful, dancey manner that’s bursting at the seams with pace, hooks and effects, while the run of In My Kitchen, To Kill A Single Girl (Tequila) and Do My Dance is a notable bright patch.
Here we are presented with a broad spectrum of sounds as Sanelly lets happy hardcore and mid-noughties R&B pop intermingle, giving ‘Full Moon’ a maximalist surge of life. As the album progresses into its back half, her sex-positivity comes to the fore, meanwhile, with I Love People and Boom sure to set pulses racing.
But at a certain point, her flows reveal themselves to be recycled and rehashed. Pick any one of the bright, bouncy backing tracks here and splice it with the vocal from another and it would still work. Some of them don’t really hit in isolation, either. Big Booty, for example, cranks up the bass to mask a lazy refrain. “Shake it, break it, bend it like Beckham,” is a real head scratcher in 2025, but the song as a whole is fun enough that it’s glossed over.
The final two tracks — Mnatanami and I Was The Biggest Curse — do offer a much-needed respite by discovering some fresh textures, providing a softer and more vulnerable side to Sanelly’s performance. But while ‘Full Moon’ contains flashes of brilliance, one might have hoped for something more sustained and singular.
Moonchild Sanelly Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Tue March 18 2025 - MANCHESTER YES (The Pink Room)
Thu March 20 2025 - DUBLIN Grand Social
Fri March 21 2025 - LEEDS Wardrobe
Sat March 22 2025 - GLASGOW King Tuts
Mon March 24 2025 - BIRMINGHAM Hare and Hounds
Tue March 25 2025 - BRISTOL Strange Brew
Wed March 26 2025 - LONDON Village Underground
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