Since their foundation in 1997, the twelve-strong Antibalas has been committed to spreading the ideas of Fela Anikulapo Kuti, the Nigerian band leader who can be considered the godfather of the afrobeat. With his long drawn-out jujubeats, he managed to induce a trance through constant repetition of polyrhythmic patterns. This went so far that an average playing time of an hour during his famous
… concerts was more common than the exception. On record this was reduced to about twenty to twenty five minutes, which was the maximum time available on a vinyl side at the time. Antibalas doesn't go that far - their songs average seven minutes - but like no other among the newfangled afro bands like Shaolin Afronauts, Jungle By Night and The Souljazz Orchestra they perform the sound of Fela. Some members of Antibalas therefore rightly participated in the musical Fela !. (AD)more
