Even by Portland standards, it was a love fest Thursday night at the Aladdin Theater, when South African vocal group Ladysmith Black Mambazo performed. Over the group's 47 year history (!!) they've built up a following for their gentle, war harmonies and their blending of traditional Zulu vocal techniques with gospel and other secular influences. If the frequent bouts of audience applause were any indication, Portlanders are definitely in the fan camp.

Still, Ladysmith Black Mambazo showed so much joy on stage that it's hard to begrudge them the crowd's devotion. Their harmonies, anchored in velvety bass rumbles, opened up the show like a sunrise, and they peppered the moments between songs with words of hope, something they learned, in part, through South Africa's long road to social justice.

Their choreography sometimes made them seem more like exuberant boys than a decades-old ensemble (not all are original members; four of the nine are sons of founder Joseph Shabalala). Sometimes recalling Motown, sometimes recalling Greek stepping, their dance moves were spiced up with the occasional spontaneous change. Members leaped, high-kicked, boogied and grooved as they felt like it.

The group divided their show into two sets, the first more sedate, the second looser, with more audience interaction (the singing contest between the audience and the band made clear just how good they really are, though they still let the crowd win). That break was a good idea because, while the group's harmonies are excellent, with a smooth, organic feel, their tempos and rhythms can sometimes blend together a little, in part because the songs often settled into incantatory grooves -- sometimes, perhaps just a little too lulling, though always beautiful.

-- by Luciana Lopez