Fally Ipupa – Binôme

Romance on “Binôme,” a bonus track from the third disk of his sprawling “XX: Délirium” project. This one, at seven minutes and fourteen seconds, gives its main idea a real chance to develop.

Fally Ipupa has spent a lot of time looking at the multiple sides of love on this album, and “Binôme” takes it further into something more specific, the concept of a true partner or alter ego.

A term that means “Partner” or “Alter Ego” speaks directly to two persons connected by an almost inseparable bond. Located on disk three of the 51-track project, it continues the album’s constant investigation of love themes even this deep into the tracklist.

The production retains the slow, patient underpinning of Congolese rumba, written with poetic attention throughout. There’s nothing here about a speedy payoff. The long length allows the topic to breathe naturally throughout. It is one of the more meaningful love declarations in the entire “XX: Délirium” endeavor.