Summer festivals, Part 1: Africa Fête

We’re beginning to get a lot of press releases concerning summer festivals. One we thought we’d highlight is the annual Africa Fête show in Marseilles on June 30. First, because we’ve always wanted to visit the town and secondly as the event is quite cool. Headliners include Kristo Numpuby, Ashes to Machines, Oumar Kouyaté and Fogny. Needless to say, there will be the usual extra-curricular goodies such as contemporary dance from Burkina Faso, associations promoting all things African and a truck built by artists from Liverpool, Prague and elsewhere on the theme of migration. All this for a ridiculous €5. Details on the Africa Fête site.

Visa problems for Konono N° 1 in Europe

The bad news this week is that the Konono N°1 European tour has been hit by the visa blues. The group was due to fly to Europe via Switzerland but two members were refused as they didn’t have the requisite Schengen visas. These had been requested at the German embassy in Kinshasa but were not forthcoming. Why? “No comment,” from the consulate. Konono N° 1 has been touring for about three years, and had all the requisite paperwork.

Dates in France, Ireland and Slovakia are sill going ahead, apparently. But it would be wise to check your local press if you bought tickets.

Balkan Beat Box tour Europe

Balkan Beat Box are a nutty band that mixes rock with strong Balkan/Greek/Mediterranean influences, making them sure-fire favourites at festivals. Their second album, “Nu Med”, has been out since April in Europe (late May in the UK). So the band is taking to the roads again, criss-crossing the continent between now and mid-August. We really recommend this crowd, who also did some cool remixes on the “Electric Gypsyland” compilation.

Click through for the live dates and some concert footage.

Natacha Atlas: European tour dates

The Arabo-Fusion singer Natacha Atlas is currently touring Europe to follow up on the release of “Mish Maoul”. The dates include shows in France, Belgium, Poland, Italy, England and Scotland. Transglobal Underground will appear with her on at least one date.

Atlas is one of the few performers that easily broaches the divide between the Western Europe an the Middle East. Asked by the Belgian magazine Agenda if she saw a difference between the audiences, she replied: “In the Middle East, you can tell by their faces they know what I’m singing about.”

For further details, visit Mish-Maoul.com.

Natacha Atlas on iTunes US. Natacha Atlas on iTunes UK.

Magic System to appear in the UK

One of the most popular acts in France at the moment are Magic System, the Ivory Coast band that has chalked up a number of major hits such as “Premier Gaou” and “Bouger, Bouger”. They have so far totalled over 2 million singles in France alone, as well as 400,000 albums.
Their mainstream version of the Zouglou sound (see also: Sur-Choc) is now set to have a major unveiling in London when they bring a full 12-piece band to the Coronet Theatre on Easter Sunday, April 8. The show will also feature noted DJs Edu from Kenya and Agbadou from Ivory Coast. Support acts are the Congolese act Nostra Musica and Pit’a Mbongo from Cameroon. So it should be a pretty hot night.

Magic System on iTunes US

Magic system on iTunes UK

Magic System Official website

Manou Gallo: 2nd album and documentary

Ivory Coast’s Manou Gallo is one of the most in-demand bassists in Europe. After playing with Zap Mama for six years and appearing in a play, she released her first album, “Dida” on the IglooMondo label in 2003. A documentary now traces her worldwide tour and the release of the second album…

Aiwa: Arabic dub/electronic on the road

Created in 1998 by two Iraqi brothers brought up in France, Aiwa is one of the most exciting fusion/electronic outfits. Musically, they mix Classical Arabic sounds with heavy dub/electronic grooves and ultra-suave rap. They have released two albums “Aiwa” and “El Nar” (photo), with an album of remixes of “Aiwa” in the pipeline - more about this later.

Aiwa are about to take to the road again, playing a number of dates in France and Poland:

To check out their music, visit Aiwa Music.

Dig music, build something positive

The people over at Calabash Music have had a neat idea. Despite what many people think, the US spends less than 1% of its federal budget on foreign aid. As Calabash points out, “If everyone in the United States gave up one soft drink a month we could double our current aid to Africa. If everyone gave up one movie a year we could double our current aid to Africa and Asia.” But rather than get preachy and feeling guilty about the situation, Calabash are running a very simple promotion called “Tune Your World”. “If every American would buy 10 songs by African Artists — We would DOUBLE the amount of money the US is currently sending to Africa.”

So their idea is simple: get ten happening songs for just $7.99. I know Calabash Music. Two things you should know about them too: they have a really good selection of music, and as they work directly with musicians and labels from around the world, at least 50% of your money is going straight to the musicians and labels. What’s more, they are highlighting a number of interesting projects such as the Refugee All Stars, the Afrobeat Sudan Aid Project (featuring Antibalas, Tony Allen and the voice of Fela Kuti, no less) and Stop Excision.

By the way, this is not an American thing. It’s a music thing. Fantastic music is being produced across Africa, but we won’t hear it unless people like Calabash and, yes, Music Wire stick it under our noses. So for some tasty MP3s, visit Tune Your World and start browsing.

Return of the cool in jazz

There is something decidedly cool about the vibraphone even though it’s not the type of instrument you hang out with or stick under your arm like Chet Baker or Lester Bowie. Yet over two albums, Pascal Schumacher and his Quartet have given the vibe a new burst of interest. They combine cool school competency with a patina of blues, which is all the more surprising as they come from tiny Luxembourg. Schumacher has recorded with Australia’s Kristen Cornwell and picked up a handful of awards. The albums “Change of the Moon” and “Personal Legend” have both been played a lot at the Music Wire office. Lyrical, stylish and yet still cool, this is jazz we could vote for.
Schumacher will be appearing with and without his quartet in January. An important date will be January 22, when they appear at the Majestic Hotel in Cannes for the prestigious Midem music fair.

Click through for his concert dates.

See Damon Alban and Mali’s finest in London

You’ll have to move fast on this one. Damon Alban of Blur has visited Mali on several occasions, and is determined to spread the good news about its music. He is hosting an exclusive event on December 13 in South London that will bring together Amadou and Mariam, Rachid Taha, K’naan, Souad Massi and Ba Cissoko along with 20 or so other like-minded English and American artists, a lot of whom will be your favourite acts (…….. it apparently includes some very big names indeed).

But - and it’s a major but - this is not taking place in Wembley. It’s a 300 capacity venue that will already be pretty full with the musicians and their guests. But the organisers would also like to invite some music fans and are opening a few places to the audience. So nip over quickly to the Africa Express site and… good luck!

Before that, many of the same crew will be appearing at London’s Roundhouse on December 11. Check your local press for details.

Univers Zero in Prague and Mexico

Prog rock never really goes away. On 1st December the European band Univers Zero will play at the “Alternativa Festival� in Prague. On 22 March 2007, they will appear at the “Baja Prog Festival� in Mexicali (Mexico).

Univers Zero’s roots come from the rock and jazz scene in 70s Belgium. Extensive touring was supported by albums such as “1313″, “Heresie” and Heatwave”. After splitting and reforming a few times, Univers Zero now consists of 7 musicians. The band has plans to go into studio for a new album in 2007. For details, visit the Univers Zero website. Remember where you read it first.

Sizzla: new album and US tour dates

Dancehall legend Sizzla has announced US tour dates to coincide with his new album, The Overstanding, scheduled to be released onNovember 21st, 2006.

Sizzla emerged during the latter half of the ‘90s, and quickly became one of the leaders of the modern dancehall movement. Along with Buju Banton and Capelton, he helped lead dancehall back to the musical and spiritual influences of roots reggae, favoring organic productions and heavily Rastafarian subject matter.

Sizzla’s first success came with the release of Praise Ye Jah in 1997. Widely considered one of the top modern dancehall albums of its time, Praise Ye Jah was quickly trumped by the release of Black Woman & Child that same year. The title track was a smash hit and became something of a cultural reggae anthem. Sizzla continued to release a string of successful albums including Be I Strong in 1999, the spiritually driven, hip-hop influenced Bobo Ashanti in 2001, and Da Real Thing in 2002, where he concentrated on a softer, mellower, more romantic material. With a catalogue of over 40 albums to his credit, Sizzla remains one of the most if not the most widely respected figures in all of Dancehall reggae. The Overstanding hits stores on November 21st, 2006.

TOUR DATES:

• 11/24 Newark, NJ - Terrace Ballroom
• 11/25 Bladensburg, MD - Crossroads
• 11/28 Ann Arbor, MI - Blind Pig
• 12/2 Columbus, OH - Airosa Villa
• 12/5 Wilmington, NC - The Rox
• 12/6 Winston-alem, NC - Ziggy’s
• 12/7 Raleigh, NC - Lincoln Theater
• 12/8 Norfolk, VA - The Norva
• 12/9 Philadephia, PA - Trocader
• 12/12 Providence, RI - Lupo’s At The Strand
• 12/14 Stowe, VT - Rusty Nail
• 12/15 Revere, MA - Club Lido

                                                                           Sizzla on eMusic

Montreux Jazz boss is “Personality of the Year”

Just about everybody knows about the Montreux Jazz festival. But not many people know who is behind it. So take a bow Claude Nobs, a former accountant at the Montreux Tourist Office who now runs a festival that welcomes 250,000 people a year. The Midem trade fair has decided to honour him with a “Personality of the Year” award next January. For details, read the full story on Cannes or Bust.