Balkan Beat Box American Tour

Wailing horns, booming bass, winding guitar lines, thumping drums and screaming vocals all combine to make up a Balkan Beat Box live show. The crowd is dancing, if not jumping, rhythm is reverberating from all angles and directions as percussionists, horn players, vocalists, and dancers all rotate around the stage. Objects, substances and people fly on, off and around the stage as the show romps and raves from set to set. There are very few live musical experiences quite like a Balkan Beat Box concert.

BBB is bringing their world-class live show back to the USA starting this Thursday night in Boston.  I've had the privilege of catching them live four times before, and each time, they re-affirmed why they're one of the most dynamic live acts on the planet.  Check out their tour dates below and catch them live when they come to a city close to you.

Thursday - March 14 - Paradise Rock Club - Boston, MA

Friday - March 15 - Higher Ground - Burlington, VT

Saturday March 16 - MASS MOCA - North Adams, MA

Sunday March 17 - Webster Hall - New York, NY

Tuesday March 19 - 9:30 Club - Washington, D.C.

Wednesday March 20 - The Blockley - Philadelphia, PA

Saturday March 23 - The Summit Music Hall - Denver, CO

Turntables on las Ramblas

You may have heard of Turntables on the Hudson, the collective of dj's and beatmakers known to throw parties at destinations across New York led by NYC's own DJ Nickodemus, but have you ever wondered what would happen to that same party if it hopped across the pond to Barcelona, Spain?  It would probably sounds a lot like Turntables on las Ramblas, the new compilation out March 19, 2013 on Wonderwheel Records.  This comp is the first in River to River, City to City series curated by Nickodemus that will feature stops in Peru, the Caribbean and Egypt.  This album is one non-stop global dance party.  Need I say more?

Wogdog Blues

If you're interested in staying up with the latest in African Hip-Hop, dig this: Wogdog Blues, the new album from Art Melody, the MC from Burkina Faso, out March 5, 2013 on Akwaaba Records, is pushing the envelope of African hip-hop the hardest out of almost anyone on the continent.  Imagine if MF Doom or Madvillian went to West Africa.  Throw in a few samples of assorted African musical sounds and you'll get close to Wogdog Blues.  

This is much more than just an African hip-hop album.  Produced by Redrum and Minimalkonstrunction, the beats draw from afrobeat, bass music, 1990s hip hop, African tradition and retro-futurism to best carry Art Melody’s unique flow. The album is mastered by Dave Cooley (Spoek Mathambo, J Dilla, Madvillain) in Los Angeles.

Art Melody will be touring throughout France over the coming month or two to promote the new album.  Check out his FB page to be up on the latest.  Cop the album via bandcamp.  This kind of thing doesn't come around often.

New Album from Superhuman Happiness

Hands, the new album  from one of my favorite bands on the planet, Superhuman Happiness, out March 5, 2013 on Royal Potato Family Records, is finally available for mass consumption.  Led by Stuart Bogie (Antibalas, Sway Machinery, Iron and Wine, TV on the Radio, etc. etc.), Superhuman Happiness is a collage of sounds and colors all designed to move you physically and otherwise.  

I first saw Superhuman Happiness in 2007 at a crowded Zebulon in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.  A lot has changed about the band in that time (the personnel, the instrumentation) but that same rhythmic, danceable, universally resonant sound is still there.  

It's been extremely interesting to see SHH grow over the years, and this album definitely represents a major step forward in that growth.  The album is streamable on all the major providers, but if you're interested paying for the music in a way that will get back to the musicians, go to the label website and pick up the album on vinyl, CD, or digitally.  This music lives up to its name.  It is deeply human in the best way possible.

New Video from Superhuman Happiness

This video really needs no introduction, but for the sake of shout-outs, this amazing video is for Superhuman Happiness' amazingly beautiful song, See Me On My Way.  SHH is a project led by Stuart Bogie, one of the coolest cats I've ever had the pleasure of meeting.  Enjoy.

Stop the Crisis in the Congo

Femi Kuti posted this video on his fb page.  20 minutes later, I'm absolutely ashamed of the human race that we're capable of doing this to each other, and then standing by letting it happen again and again.  We're better than this.  We should only let the shame and sadness sit in long enough for us to do something to change it.

New Track from The Sway Machinery

The Sway Machinery, one of the most inventive bands on the planet, have made a track from their new EP, Monsters of the Ancient World, available for download in advance of the full EP release.  Dig it.

New Afrobeat 45 from The Polyrhythmics

It doesn't get much funkier than this.  The Polyrhythmics' new afrobeat 45 available via pre-order from Kept Records is about as diabolically funky as they come.  A-Side, Bobo is an upbeat jump-up jam while B-Side Moon Cabbage is a more mellowed out smooth groove.  Both cuts will set any dance floor on fire.  Preview the track below.  Pre-order the 45 here.

The Battle of Santiago Takes Afrobeat in a New Direction

The Battle of Santiago is an instrumental ensemble out of Toronto, Canada that combines elements of a variety of afrocentric influences to create a uniquely original sound that is at the same time progressive and traditional.  Group founder, Michael Owen, describes the different backgrounds and viewpoints represented in the group as a "push and pull."  Listening to their new album, Followed By Thousands, out March 5th on Made With Pencil Crayons Records, I couldn't agree with that characterization any more.  Preview and download a track from the new album, cop the full album when it drops, and to all those in and around Toronto, go see these guys live when you have the chance.  The dynamic energy on their recorded stuff has got to translate to their live show.

New Afrobeat Remix from Grant Phabao

Grant Phabao of Paris DJ's just got his hands on L.A. Afrobeat collective Jungle Fire's cut Tokuta.  The end result is absolute fire, as is always the case when Grant Phabao works his magic.  Dig the track below and cop it for one Euro.

New Video from Bantu - OYA OYA

Bantu - "OYA OYA" (Official Video) from bantucrew on Vimeo.

This new video from Bantu for his new song OYA OYA is absolute fire.  He teamed up with Nigerian filmmaker Siji and took over the marketplace in Bariga, Lagos capturing the spontaneous, infectious energy that urban Lagos, Nigeria has to offer.  Dig it.

EMEFE Brings their Afrobeat Sound to Breakthru Radio Studios

My afrobeat brothers EMEFE recorded a live version of the title track of their latest album, Good Future, in the BreakthruRadio Studios.  These guys are some of the most talented young cats playing afrobeat music today.  Get a taste of their sound here and then check out their album as soon as humanly possible.

Love is King Love is Queen

Sometimes I have the good fortune to stumble upon some music that touches my soul and changes my perspective on things.  A friend of mine turned me onto Avasa and Matty Love's album, Love is King Love is Queen.  These two lovers have created some truly beautiful music that is at the same time soulful and afrocentric.  Preview it below and cop it at your leisure.

DJ Sun Touches All Living Things on 100

What touches more lives and affects more living beings than the sun?  Very few things are more universal, much like the approach DJ Sun takes when sculpting the musical soundscapes for his new album 100.  Beautifully mellow yet rhythmically satisfying, 100 captures elements of many genres and sounds creating something unique and original.  Get a taste below of my favorite track from the album featuring Leah Alvarez on vocals and Martin Perna on the flute, then cop the album for yourself at your earliest convenience.

KonKoma Remixed

KonKoma Remixed, the new collection of remixes featuring beatmakers like Chico Mann, debruit, and Auntie Flo, is absolute fire.  Preview the track below, and cop the album.  Now.

The Afrobeat Blog Best Albums of 2012

2012 was a great year for music.  A lot of great bands put out some amazing albums.  While most people compiled their best of lists in the waning days of 2012, it took me a little longer to get around to it.  As the saying goes, better late than never.  

1. Antibalas - Antibalas

2. Fangnawa Experience - Fanga and Abdallah Guinéa

3. Solidarity - Souljazz Orchestra

4. Good Future - EMEFE

5. Faithful Man - Lee Fields

6. Landing on a Hundred - Cody Chesnutt

7. Thrillah - Easy Star All-Stars

8. Jungle Fire - Jungle Fire

9. High Noon - The Funk Ark

10. Instrumental EP - Chico Mann

11. Radio Salone - Sierra Leone's Refugee All-Stars

12. En Yay Sah - Janka Nabay & The Bubu Gang

13. Dub to the Bone - Super Hi-Fi

14. La Bala - Ana Tijoux

15. Roots before Branches - Henry Cole & The Afrobeat Collective

Femi Kuti Tours USA

The legendary Femi Anikulapo Kuti kicks off his US tour tonight.  I'll be catching him live next Wednesday night in Boston.  Check out the interview I conducted with Femi in 2009.  Catch him when he comes to a town near you.


17 JAN Belly up Tavern, Solana Beach
18 JAN El Rey Theatre, Los Angeles
19 JAN The Fillmore, San Fransisco
21 JAN Metro, Chicago
23 JAN Paradise Rock Club, Boston
24 JAN World cafe Live, Philadelphia
25 JAN  9.30 Club, Washington Dc
26 JAN Webster Hall, New York




The Afrobeat Blog: How would you describe the evolution of your music? Where is your music today that it wasn't several years ago when your last studio album came out?

Femi Kuti: I'm getting more experience, age, more mature, and so the music is changing with all of this. I'm happy people think it's getting better, people are enjoying it, people support what I'm doing, that's most important.

The Afrobeat Blog: What are you listening to right now that's inspiring you?

Femi: Nothing really, I'm trying to start work on my next album, so I'm working on some new stuff

The Afrobeat Blog: You've shared the stage with a lot of amazing musicians, With whom have you collaborated in your career that you've learned the most from? 

Femi: My father

The Afrobeat Blog: How old were you when you started playing with Fela and Egypt 80?

Femi: 16

The Afrobeat Blog: Who are some African musicians you feel are pushing their genres and innovating new trends in African music today?

Femi: I think most Africans are trying to do that. There's a lot of hip hop Nigerian artists that are very American-Nigerian orientated. That may be typical of my fathers influence on the music scene. There are many artists developing a unique style for themselves. It would be wrong for me to pick one.

The Afrobeat Blog: Who specifically within the genre of Afrobeat do you respect and listen to?

Femi: Nobody. 

The Afrobeat Blog: Nobody, really?

Femi: What are they going to teach me?

The Afrobeat Blog: Well, I guess you have a point.

Femi: Well I mean if I was playing at a concert and any afrobeat band is there, I would be forced to listen. I could listen from my dressing room I could hear. There are not a lot of bands playing good afrobeat, I mean, it's ok. There are many in America, Australia, France. Many are getting hooked on the afrobeat.

The Afrobeat Blog: As someone who thinks of something different when they hear the black president than someone like me who grew up in the US What did the election of a black president, Barack Obama, mean to you and what do you think it will mean for Africa on the whole?

Femi: Well, what it means to me might take a while. Barack Obama is first an American, generally, it shows that Americans are open-minded. I never believed Americans would vote a black man or black person President, the highest office in America. Americans are open-minded, there's a new generation of Americans who are not thinking on a racial basis, and are completely open-minded. So that impressed me, that gave me a lot of hope for the world and America. If Americans can see things in this light, there's a strong future for them and the world. America dictates a lot of world opinion, if America moves to the right, the world moves to the right, if America moves to the left, the world moves to the left. It impressed me a lot.

The Afrobeat Blog: Do you hope because of his African roots Obama will change the way America has dealt with Africa in the past?

Femi: I hope he will be very objective. I hope he won't be lenient in dealing with the corruption of African governments because he's a black man. I hope he doesn't fall for that. He has to be very objective, because all the African governments are corrupt. So it should not be because he's a black American he should be lenient on corruption, I think that is where he should be hard because he should want Africa to become a great continent. He has to be very hard on his policies, because he has to put an end to the corruption with his policies in Africa. He has to prove that the African government is not being proper democracy according to what we know it should be. The African government is corrupt. 

The Afrobeat Blog: I read in an interview on jambase.com, when talking about the raid on Kalakuta republic that killed your grandmother and ransacked Fela's compound, you raised the possibility of the CIA being involved. What makes you think that's the case and would you clarify your stance on the issue?

Femi: Because somebody came to warn my father before the attack and warned him the CIA wanted him dead. He said it many times. He was warned that the CIA was going to kill him. I was there, I heard him say it many times.

The Afrobeat Blog: Who came to warn Fela?

Femi: An american, I don't want to name names here.

The Afrobeat Blog: The CIA definitely has a history of targeting African ideologues that oppose them like Patrice Lamumba and many others.

Femi: Lamumba, anyone, Any western government is always opposed to any Pan-African in government.

The Afrobeat Blog: One of Fela's major accomplishments that is often overlooked was his ability to mobilize people into action around a cause. A lot of people dismiss him as a dissident, just a crazy musician, but he made things happen in Nigeria organizing youth groups and political action groups. Could you talk about some of the ways in which you've continued his legacy of political action outside of your music?

Femi: I think its just through music. I stopped giving to organizations because I found out its so corrupt, people are just taking my money, I give people money to make posters you know, put up the flyers, but they get ripped up in the street. And they're just ripping me off in my money. We're at a critical point, where the corruption is so bad, people are so desperate for money right now. It is not smart for me right now. I'll just continue to talk about the problems, sing about the problems, and deal with the problems. I can be in any part of the world today, having a good life, or having a better life than I'm having here [Nigeria], but staying here is a political statement. People are mad at me for staying here, so maybe I mobilize many generations by staying here. Three generations have passed through me knowing I have achieved what I've achieved by staying here in Nigeria. I didn't go to America to stay, I didn't go to Europe, I've stayed here. Everybody told me you've got to move, fuck that. Everybody said I won't be in demand if I stay in Nigeria. I opened the market, I've kept the market my father opened. It won't do any use to admire what I've done. I use my music, what I sing about to make a difference. And I don't want to run for office, any kind of office. I just want to be a musician.

The Afrobeat Blog: What are some of your unfinished goals for your music career?

Femi: Wow, that's a question for God Almighty to answer, not me. I want to arrange and produce some albums. I hope I can always impress and please my fans and other people, and my self as well. I'd like to spend more time with my family. What else...I'd like to see Africa Unite in my lifetime I'd like to see highways running north to south east to west like I see in America, I'd like to see big airports like I see everywhere, train stations like I see everywhere, I'd like to see the United Countries of Africa, I would like to see the eradication of poverty and the end of suffering. We're the richest continent I can't understand why we're suffering. I would like to see the end of corruption. And all these things that I stand for in my lifetime, I would like to see an end to it in my lifetime. But that's up to the creator to decide that. I'll just do my part, keep practicing, playing music, and fighting.

Femi: Just for your information the shrine was closed yesterday by the government. So now we're having a big battle right now, trying to get it open.

The Afrobeat Blog: On what grounds did they close it, they just decided they didn't want it to be open?

Femi: They said people were selling things outside, like sweets, and fried meats, biscuits, things like this on the streets, not in the shrine, on the streets, on the major road. Now they're saying we're responsible for those people. So they are closing the shrine because we let people come and sell things there. And we're like how do they expect us to get rid of these people? Do we own the road? The road belongs to the federal government. How we can we go to the federal governments' property and say get out of here? It's the government's problem to do that. They have to remove them not us.

The Afrobeat Blog: Have they tried to do things like this before?

Femi: Yea. They have closed the place for two days now, we are losing all kinds of money, our instruments are there, we can't rehearse.

The Afrobeat Blog: So what can you do to fight them?

Femi: We don't know yet, we have many options, maybe we are going to court, we don't know yet. Right now we're talking to the office of the commissioner to give us the go-ahead to open the place. They said 10 o'clock this morning, they didn't show up, then they said 2, they didn't open it, so we're still waiting.

The Afrobeat Blog: Well whatever I can do to help, I'm not sure how receptive the Nigerian government is to petitions from American music fans...

Femi: Well maybe put it in your article on the internet so that more journalists will put it in their papers, 'The Nigerian government closed the shrine, blah, blah, blah, things like that.

EMEFE Embarks on Southeastern US Tour

One of Brooklyn's finest afrobeat enesmbles, EMEFE, is about to embark on a tour of the southeastern United States.  I've seen EMEFE rock it live a number of times, and each time they hit the stage, they bring it.  If you can make it to one of these shows, definitely make it out and catch some afro-love.

What are you doing for the end of the world?

Got plans for the end of the world?  How about Friday night?  If you live in either New York or Boston and are into afrobeat, I've got two great options for you to spend what may be your last moments on God's green Earth.

If you're in or around Boston, check out Federator No. 1, Endangered Speeches, and Kina Zoré at The Church of Boston.  All three bands bring the afro-noise in a big way.  What better way to usher in the beginning of the next cycle than to shake that ass to some afroheavy grooves.  Dig the details.

If you're in or around New York definitely check out Armagedd-It-On featuring Rubblebucket Orchestra, Super Hi-Fi and the SLF DJ Crew.  If you've been to a SLF extravaganza before, then you know they know how to get down.  Don't waste a chance to catch this collection of amazing music.  You may never have another opportunity.

Super Hi-Fi: Dub to the Bone

Do you love the trombone?  How about nasty bass-lines that vibrate the ground underneath your feet, shaking your insides to a reggae rhythm?  If your answer is yes, Super Hi-Fi has a major dose of what you love waiting with their debut EP Dub to the Bone, out today on Electric Cowbell Records.  Super Hi-Fi is the brainchild of Ezra Gale and the inner-workings of his Afro-Dub mind.  Ezra has been a friend of mine for several years now.  I first saw him perform with Aphrodesia, the bay-area afrobeat ensemble that introduced me to the experience of live afrobeat, back in 2005.  

Ezra moved across the country to New York around 2009 where he started to put together the lineup for Super Hi-Fi.  The band has evolved into a known entity around New York where their brand of dub is in demand.  Dub to the Bone is the culmination of their early efforts, 8 tracks of thick, heavy, sub-woofer empowering dub.  I'll be checking them out this Friday night at Toad in Cambridge, MA.  They're sharing the bill with Rubble Bucket Orchestra on December 20th for Armagedd-It-On at The Lab in Brooklyn, NY.