Arctic Monkeys? The Hold Steady? Enough of the great white dopes, the most exciting thing in music is happening in the heart of Africa. The ghettoised suburbs in Kinshasa, in Congo, have been the place to namedrop been for the past year, besides from those trendy baile funk-filled falevas in Rio de Janerio. Konono No.1 popularised the electro-Afro-clash on the first of the Congotronics series released last February, when their DIY amps and instruments gave a buzzy, trancey distortion to traditional central African rhythms. Plenty thought it was sample trickery, but Konono No.1, like all the groups featured on this second installment, were recorded live. The likembe, or thumb piano, created from bits of old scrap metal such as tightened piano string and car parts, gave the band its distinctive funk. But Konono No. 1 aren’ the sole exporter. In fact, this second installment is even better than the first, having the advantage of featuring nine groups, and thus greater variety. One criticism that could have been aimed at the first Congotonics was its homogeny, but its sequel mixes the traditional with the new. Sobanza Mimanisa’ sound, for example, consists of a likembe, a whistle, a bell, a guitar and, as percussion, a spray can wacked against a plastic beer case. On the excellent accompanying DVD, one likembe player absent-mindedly fiddles with his instrument like it’s a PlayStation controller. But the most fascinating aspect of the shakily-filmed footage is the locals standing around the sidelines looking downright bored. It makes you wonder; if they’re so indifferent to this fantastic music, what other wonders are hidden away waiting to be unearthed?
David Lappin
