Congotronics
CONGOTRONICS CHECK IT
I want a new music! This desire was inaugerated by a personal research project I embarked on trying to discover the roots of industrial noise music, it's political orientation in particular (this was a genre I reveled in for years but had abandoned only a few years ago). I discovered that one of the bands I really used to like, Death in June, quite early in their career (1983) used to parade around on stage wearing brown shirts. Actually fairly recently there was a bit of a controversy when they were booked to play a show in Chicago. I found out that groundbreaking bands such as; NON, Throbbing Gristle, Foetus, and Nurse with Wound flirted with fascist imagery and symbolism. I got really turned off and began to explore other music. I have been adrift musically for quite some time...that is until recently. One of my discoveries was a band from the DRC called Konono No. 1, the album Congotronics. Now this IS NOT namby pamby world music it's an exploration of sound and texture that is vibrant and challenging.
Description From the website:
KONONO N°1 was founded over 25 years ago by Mingiedi, a virtuoso of the likembé (a traditional instrument sometimes called "sanza" or "thumb piano", consisting of metal rods attached to a resonator). The band's line-up includes three electric likembés (bass, medium and treble), equipped with hand-made microphones built from magnets salvaged from old car parts, and plugged into amplifiers. There's also a rhythm section which uses traditional as well as makeshift percussion (pans, pots and car parts), three singers, three dancers and a sound system featuring these famous megaphones. It's truly a beautiful beautiful album. So fresh!
I want a new music! This desire was inaugerated by a personal research project I embarked on trying to discover the roots of industrial noise music, it's political orientation in particular (this was a genre I reveled in for years but had abandoned only a few years ago). I discovered that one of the bands I really used to like, Death in June, quite early in their career (1983) used to parade around on stage wearing brown shirts. Actually fairly recently there was a bit of a controversy when they were booked to play a show in Chicago. I found out that groundbreaking bands such as; NON, Throbbing Gristle, Foetus, and Nurse with Wound flirted with fascist imagery and symbolism. I got really turned off and began to explore other music. I have been adrift musically for quite some time...that is until recently. One of my discoveries was a band from the DRC called Konono No. 1, the album Congotronics. Now this IS NOT namby pamby world music it's an exploration of sound and texture that is vibrant and challenging.
Description From the website:
KONONO N°1 was founded over 25 years ago by Mingiedi, a virtuoso of the likembé (a traditional instrument sometimes called "sanza" or "thumb piano", consisting of metal rods attached to a resonator). The band's line-up includes three electric likembés (bass, medium and treble), equipped with hand-made microphones built from magnets salvaged from old car parts, and plugged into amplifiers. There's also a rhythm section which uses traditional as well as makeshift percussion (pans, pots and car parts), three singers, three dancers and a sound system featuring these famous megaphones. It's truly a beautiful beautiful album. So fresh!
posted by James at 8:52 PM
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