Aug 7/07
Getting there
So what do you guys think of the latest Antibalas album?
I’ve always thought they were great live but that their studio recordings lacked something.. maybe it was just the imitation Fela that got to me, but in principle I have nothing against modern afrobeat. It’s like their tracks lacked that extra “oh, yeah, ahuh, what” that you get live and other musicians can pull-off on their albums.
All that said, I’m happy that Antibalas‘ latest release is a departure from their previous work. The track I’ll feature today is a clear example of where they’re moving. Produced by the same guy who worked with Stereolab and Tortoise, their sound has certainly changed.
Does that make it good? I haven’t decided yet. It still doesn’t sound as fresh as, say, Nomo, or as cool as the Allenko Brotherhood. But it’s a step in the right direction. Antibalas may yet be capable of becoming a truly rock-out, original afrobeat group in their own right.
Decide for yourself and let me know what you think.
Tags: afrobeat
I definitely hear similarities with other John McEntire produced material. But hopefully, the rest of the album strays away from a “signature” production style and lets Anti do they thing.
This tune got me though, when the bassline finally kicked in. Thanks for that.
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Hmm, they’re older stuff truly impressed me but not this. Sounding like Tortoise in my opinion is not a good thing and unfortunately this sounds like Tortoise.
Maybe it’s just me but I only like Antibalas when they sound most like Fela Kuti in proper tribute. Sometimes they outdid the master with balls to the wall afrobeat– I mean the first few seconds of “El Machete” off one of their earliest albums practically brings tears to my eye. It’s still nice to see them coming into their own, if in fact that’s what the new track/album represents.
To me they were always held back by the weak vocalist– his voice was too whiny and his improvisations were pretty weak in my opinion (“Move your yansh………..move your yansh……–back and forth..”). I think they’re at their best when they’re doing their uniquely gritty and powerful instrumental afrobeat– starting with intertwined guitars, then burning horns, then say a bari solo, all with a production quality that makes it impossible to independently guess that the band only started working in the 90′s. Yeah it’s been done– mostly by Fela decades before– but they still had a unique sound and filled a painful gap in modern music.
That is of course their roots, and as they get further from that I like their sound less. Just another case of a person not liking a band’s developing and changing sound.
By the way that Mahmoud Ahmed performance is AWESOME.
Those horns! Those horns! Really, this is a hot track and too bad but not matched by the rest of the album. The spacing in the production really helps, which is the only Tortoise I hear. I used to listen to Antibalas when I wanted some ‘succinct’ Fela but I listen to this cause I want to hear those horns, which means it is a success in my mind.