Music / world music
Bristol’s month in World Music – July 2024
OK – World Music-wise there’s an obvious elephant in the field this month: the annual feast that is WOMAD will be happening at Charlton Park, some 40 minutes away (Thur 25 – Sun 28).
We’ll come to that in a moment, but let’s not forget there’s 27 more days in the month and not a few pretty ear-catching gigs on offer here in the city.
And a big shout goes out to The Boxing Gym for their It Takes A City day party (Sat 6) raising funds and awareness for next year’s return of the Saint Pauls Carnival.
is needed now More than ever
One gig that really stands out is the remarkable Ustad Noor Baksh (Jam Jar, Wed 3), a 79-year old musician from the nomadic culture of Balochistan, an Asian region that spans Pakistani, Afghan and Persian/Iranian traditions. What makes Ustad so delightfully amazing is the combination of this rich and diverse mix of inspirations with his unique instrument. He plays the Benju, a keyed zither which he has electrified, giving it an eerie twanging tone that emphasises the liquid virtuosity of his playing and spontaneous variations. It’s a remarkably individual sound that is also haunted by the echoes of tradition.
What’s surprising is that Ustad Noor Bakhsh isn’t on the bill for WOMAD but there again it’s still going to be a pretty bumper year to judge by the line-up. There’s a sprinkling of old favourites – Baaba Maal, Gogol Bordello, Amadou and Mariam – and a whole lot of intriguing new arrivals. Notable ‘discoveries’ for the audience might include slinky Mexican cumbia band Kumbia Boruka, the striking South African ‘future ghetto funk’ of Moonchild Sanelly, the entrancing vocal simplicities of Bhutan Balladeers and the Catalan futurism of vocal duo Tarta Relena, especially in their collaborative 4132314 project.
Zimbabwean Sungura duo Gonora Sounds are at WOMAD but you can catch their distinctive ringing guitar sound in The Attic (Thur 11). The well-named Ghanaian Highlife-meets-Gospel band Alogte Oho & His Sounds of Joy come to The Beacon (Thur 4) while the Cotham Club has Ubunye (Cotham Parish Church, Fri 19) who combine Zulu-based singing and dancing with full-tilt Afro-jazz instrumentation to impressively uplifting effect. And there’s another upbeat, horn-heavy fusion when Sao Paulo’s 10-strong Bixiga 70 come to Jam Jar (Sat 27), this time combining Latin and African elements with a view to packing the dance floor.
Another highly danceable night at the Jam Jar will feature Afro-Colombian sound system rumberos Systema Solar (Wed 10), visiting Bristol for the first time with their ‘electropical’ grooves. That hip-grabbing Colombian fusion beat goes on with tropical psych outfit Los Guayabo Brothers (Canteen, Thur 11) and you could carry it forward to the Beacon (Fri 12) when The Fantasy Orchestra celebrate the Brazilian Tropicalia dance craze. And then you can head on over to Canteen (Sat 13) for a final workout to Mr Pacho Vibes System’s meltdown of electronic world music vibrations. Thank goodness there’s Sunday to get over it all.
Except … there’s a couple of reggae acts starting with hip and happening rising star singer Skillibeng (O2 Academy, Thur 18) and shortly followed by legendary roots band Black Uhuru (Marble Factory, Mon 22). After some 50 years the only surviving member is Duckie Simpson but past line-ups included Sly and Robbie, Michael Rose and Sandra ‘Puma’ Jones. And there’s a distinct reggae influence (as well as a hint of cumbia) in Malian groovers Madalitso Band who come to Lost Horizon (Thur 25).
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