Indestructible rhythms, musical legacies & a funk-fuelled orchestra.
Seun Kuti, the youngest son of Afrobeat founder Fela Kuti, brings his father’s 16-piece funk fuelled orchestra, Egypt 80 and the spirit and beats of Africa to Band on the Wall.
Hailed for continuing Fela’s musical legacy, Seun Kuti took control of his father’s extraordinary combo Egypt 80 at the age of 14 and has been laying down a potent version of those indestructible rhythms ever since.
A number of the current members of the Egypt 80 line-up not only played with Fela, but were participants in Nigeria’s political and social uprising in the early 1980s alongside him.
With the mighty new From Africa With Fury: Rise, Seun Anikulapo Kuti heads up Egypt 80. The album follows Kuti’s critically praised debut, 2008’s Many Things, which was unanimously hailed for continuing Fela’s musical legacy. From Africa With Fury: Rise sees Kuti finding his own idiosyncratic voice as songwriter, singer, and band leader, its songs and sonic approach marked by provocative edge and mature self-assurance.
Produced by Brian Eno, John Reynolds, and Kuti, with additional production by Godwin Logie, and mixed by John Reynolds and Tim Oliver, the album captures Seun and Egypt 80’s extraordinary power, fraught with the scorching rhythms and kinetic funk energy that has earned the band – as ever, under the leadership of alto saxophonist Lekan Animashaun – worldwide acclaim as one of today’s most incendiary live acts. With Kuti’s booming vocal stylings at the forefront, songs are fuelled by call-and-response hooks, breakneck tempos, and combative, topical lyricism which firmly sets the classic Egypt 80 sound in the modern era.
Fans of the Afrobeat movement will be counting down the days until Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 present their electrifying live show and powerful musical message to Manchester.
The Picturehouse Cafe Bar is open beforehand for delicious food and drinks.