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  Gangbe Brass Band
Whendo (World Village 468050, 2005)
The colonization of many an African nation in the 19th century brought European
music to those countries as well. Benin's
Gangbe Brass Band are determined to
make clear the extent to which horns were part of the equation, driving the
point further along by not only throwing in the sort of expert horn chops you'd
hear in styles like Afrobeat but also just plain throwing down in a style all
their own.
An abundance of interlocking percussion, often accompanied by hearty
call-and-response vocals, builds a nonstop backbone to every track on this
terrific disc and provides a reminder of the primal power that's always mattered
in African music. And oh, those horns. Trumpets, trombone, saxophone and
euphonium (a smaller relative of the tuba) follow up the charge led by the
percussion, sometimes purring along, sometimes bursting out full force,
sometimes matching the intricacy of the drumming and always shining exactly the
way brass ought to. (Think of a Nigerian juju band with horns instead of guitars
and you'll get some idea of how this sounds.)
Those who've had an influence on the Gangbe guys are clarified in at least
one song title ("Remember Fela"), but you won't have to listen too hard to hear
that this crew has also gotten wind of sounds from New Orleans, the Caribbean,
Latin America and even similarly lively Balkan brass outfits like
Fanfare Ciocarlia. No African music fan should pass this CD by, but lovers
of razor sharp horn and percussion playing are particularly urged to seek it
out.
[Buy
Whendo and
Togbé].
Read other stories about
Gangbe Brass Band:
Gangbč Brass Band in Seattle
Dave Atkin's CD review of Whendo:
Where there's brass.
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