Customer Reviews

In the 7th Moon, the Chief Turned Into a Swimming Fish and Ate the Head of His Enemy by Magic

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Kudos to the innovative Congotronics project for bringing forth the fascinating music found on this album (which is an early entry in what looks to be an ongoing series). Here we have a couple of dozen authentic musicians from the Congo, representing various ethnic groups and languages, collaborating on new sounds and aided by some cutting edge sonic production techniques. For most Western listeners, what comes to mind when hearing the term "African music" is the popular sounds of Ghana, Senegal, or Nigeria. But the music of the Congo has its own unique style, with a use of repetition and slowly developing grooves that create an absolutely mesmerizing effect. (Some Western listeners may find these lengthy workouts more tedious than mesmerizing, but the only song here that partially falls on the unhappy side of that line is "Mukuba.") Of special interest are "Quick as White," based on the uniquely haunting sound of heavily distorted finger pianos, the acapella "Tshitua Fuila Mbuloba," and the extended near-funk grooves of "Beyond the 7th Moon" and "Drowning Goat (Mbuji-Mayi)." The album's wild title only hints at the fascination and intrigue of the sounds herein. [~doomsdayer520~]

This is the rare slice of music that succeeds at music's core goal- to evoke an emotional response from the listener. This simplistic, repetitive music just stinks of joy, you can hear and feel passionate, urgent HAPPINESS flying out of these dinky instruments built from trash. Accompanied by chanting vocals in an unknown (to me) language, it is primal, raising hairs and producing shivers of joy. It's borderline hallucinogenic. Turn it up and dance around the house like a fool! A happy, happy fool.