Music Reviews
Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra
Liberation Beats Vol. 1
(Ninja Tune)
When Nigerian Afro beat originator Fela Kuti
died in 1997, there was already a couple of generations of musical
followers and appropriators recording and performing around the world who owed their
sound to Kuti. They were evidence of the power, energy, and beauty of his
music and extended Kuti's legacy.
Though Afro beat has yet to have the global
impact and commercial success as reggae did with the arrival of Bob Marley in the '70s,
Kuti is in many ways the Bob Marley of Afro beat, and like the Jamaican
reggae master, Kuti's presence was uplifting and reflected the aspirations
and feelings of cultures (West African) and a nation (Nigeria) marginalized on the world stage. And his
message was arguably more overtly political than Marley's.
Four years after Kuti's passing comes Antibalas Afro Beat
Orchestra, one of the freshest and most energetic bands to hit the international music scene. Kuti's influence, musically and philosophically,
is obvious on the group's debut, "Liberation Afro Beat Volume 1."
The horns are scorching, the compositions
long and entrancing and heavily layered with percussion and drums like the African
djembe. It'll make you want to get up and dance, maybe fall into a
trance. But unlike much of today's dance and trance club sounds, there's nothing electronic or crispy or sample-laden about these sounds and
beats. The band is real and polished. And at times the recording has the raw feel
of a live recording, as if lovingly committed to tape in a downtown Lagos
music hall at 3:00 AM by an eager and talented sound techie with some
pretty decent equipment. In fact, two tracks were recorded live at the
Jazz cafe in London.
And another fact: Antibalas isn't from
Nigeria. They're Brooklyn, USA, all the way.
For Antibalas' frontman Martin "Antibalas" Perna
("Antibalas" is a Spanish word meaning "bullet proof"), the Afro beat sound
seems to be in his blood. The sound is so convincing, so authentic,
that you'd think he had grown up traveling on the road with Fela Kuti's
sprawling orchestras in '70s.
Originally from Philadelphia, Martin has
explained in press interviews about how he discovered Afro beat while a
teenage music freak growing up in Philly at a time when most of his and my generation
scarcely had even heard of Afro beat, despite it having been around for decades
already.
Years later, when he moved to New York
and began looking to put a band together, Martin found other musicians
had an interest in the sound. In an early incarnation, the collective
of Martin's musician friends and artists released a CD and began performing
around New York, laying the foundation of what would become Antibalas.
Like Kuti before them, Antibalas has a
political, activist message, explicit in tracks like "World War Four," which
rails against US military intervention around the world, the New York Police Department's racial profiling,
and government oppression against the indigenous people of Chiapas, Mexico.
That Ninja Tune has released this disc
is a monumental testament to the open ears and of music
makers and DJs seeking fresh beats and rhythms and delving deeper into the rich history of contemporary sounds. This may
support the higher ascension of Afro beat's legacy and influence, not to mention
that of Fela Kuti, too.
This is already one of our favorite discs
of the year. Mos def on our Top Five list for 2K1. Pick it up and check
out Antibalas the first chance you get. The Air crew will be sure to let you know about Antibalas tour dates in Japan as soon as they're anounced.- Jason Shields
****
Related Links
Antibalas Web Site
http://www.antibalas.com
Fela Kuti Music
http://www.femikutimusic.com/fela/default.html
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