Neil Spencer 

Staff Benda Bilili: Bouger le monde – review

The Kinshasa troupe's second album presents a richer, more percussive sound, writes Neil Spencer
  
  


Kinshasa's troupe of disabled musicians have indeed "moved the world" with their trajectory from street scufflers to international stars, a feat celebrated here on Apandjokwetu. Recorded in a studio rather than in the zoo gardens, this second outing presents a richer, more percussive sound, albeit one still shot through with the zinging pyrotechnics of tin-can guitar. Its lilting, layered vocals and loping grooves are anchored in the conventions of Congo's 1980s soukous, though there's an expedition into swamp blues on Djambula. Its themes range across disability, street gangs and shady preachers, and the edginess of their debut still lurks below the polished vocal harmonies.

 

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