Review of the album “BUTU” by the group KOKOKO!

The influence of Kizaba and the artisans of the Moonshine collective (Pierre Kwenders) allowed us to become familiar with the modern expressions of Congolese songs and rhythms that the veterans of the group Konono N°1 had presented to us about twenty years ago. KOKOKO! has, since its first album, Fongola(2019) took up the torch, first achieving a fusion of these rhythms (played on hand-made instruments) and the electro-techno aesthetic, refined by the Breton composer and director Xavier Thomas, aka Débruit. On BUTUthe group adds a post-punk string to its bow: the fiery electric bass line of musician Boms Bombolo which introduces the song Bazo Banga early on the album fits perfectly with the chanted singing of the four Congolese in the orchestra. MokiliDébruit imagines synth orchestrations evoking the dance-house of the 1990s and which, once again, combine surprisingly well with the type of melodies proposed by the festive orchestra.

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BUTU

KOKOKO!, Transgressive Records

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