Like the mythology of the band itself, the music of Antibalas reveals itself in layers. The New York Cityborn Afrobeat ensemble first began evolving in Williamsburg, Brooklyn over 20 years ago, often fine-tuning their electrifying style in singer Duke Amayo’s kung fu dojo. Now, their first LP since 2017, Fu Chronicles , attempts to harken back to those early days when, truly, anything seemed possible and everything was malleable: the band’s sound, lineup and its vision of the world. As such, the album’s six tracks sizzle and crackle, winding their way through delicious grooves instead of clobbering the listener with heavy-stacked funk. Fu Chronicles opens on “Amenawon” with a full four minutes of slowly unfolding polyrhythms and horns, turned up to a simmer, before the band casts aside the subtlety and launches into a full-on blowout, priming the listener for what comes next. Since water is also a symbol of adaptability in kung fu, the song functions as a dedication to both the West African Yoruba river goddess Yemoja and Amayo’s own late mother. The centerpiece of Fu Chronicles is the nearly sevenminute “Fight Am Finish,” in which Amayo’s vocals punctuate his horn section like side-hooks, singing playful taunts (“Get ready to rumble!” and “You must never, ever let go!”) in between the clanging of a fight bell (with Amayo actually announcing the fight rounds). Recorded in Daptone’s House of Soul in Bushwick, Brooklyn, Fu Chronicles doesn’t require knowledge of Antibalas’ mythology to enjoy. But the kung fu Easter Eggs do make it a devilishly fun record if you know what you’re listening for—and it’s still a wonderful, deeply soulful Afrobeat record even if you don’t.