Sunday Afternoon Music

Well, it’s Sunday evening, and there’s not a whole lot going on today. People are still absorbing the Palin announcement and waiting for the Republican Convention to start tomorrow. So, with that in mind, let’s listen to some music.



Kasai Allstars are a supergroup from Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo. I first became exposed to them on the Crammed Discs release, Congotronics 2. Congotronics is a series of albums that Crammed has been releasing over the last few years. The first was an album from another band in Kinshasa, Konono N°1. This week, Crammed releases the third album in the series and the first by Kasai Allstars, called In the 7th Moon, The Chief Turned Into a Swimming Fish and Ate the Head of His Enemy by Magic.

Kasai Allstars are quite different from Konono N°1. Konono N°1 have a buzzing, distorted, propulsive sound based on electrified thumb pianos called likembes. Their sound, while based on traditional melodies and forms is very close to post rock and other avant garde kinds of indie rock. Kasai Allstars have a more traditional sound, using electrified traditional instruments like the likembes Konono N°1 use, but they use a wider array of instruments, including electric guitars and traditional acoustic instruments and percussion. They have a complicated, polyrhythmic sound that’s less aggressive and more open than Konono N°1’s.

Kasai Allstars is made up of members of different musical groups from around the Kasai region, as well as from five different tribal groups, each with a different language and musical tradition. The fusion of these different styles has helped to produce a really fascinating mix of music, complexly rhythmic and melodic.

The new album is a vibrant example of an exciting music scene in a troubled part of the world. Both Kasai Allstars and Konono N°1 are worth checking out if you find the airless, suffocating feeling of most “world music” boring. I saw Konono N°1 a few years ago when they toured the US and I definitely found the bleeding edge where chin stroking hipsters met dancing hippies, but it was still a great show. Take a few minutes this Sunday and check it out. I promise it’ll be more fun than reading more about Sarah Palin.