Take a lead singer of Liberian griot lineage with a throat full of reggae and gospel, a Hebridean guitarist with a background in folk fingerpicking and 60s psychedelia, a Parisian percussionist who had travelled and drummed extensively in the world's Latin quarters, an Aberdonian bassist with a fixation on finding the groove that would link Peter Gabriel's world fusion and The Who, a Paisley-born jazz-inflected drummer who studied in Berklee, Boston, a Ugandan singer with a soul voice and an obsession with melancholic 70s singer-songwriters, and a Ghanaian dancer with one foot in the R'nB bag and the other dragging it away to African Gospel harmony choir recitals... stick them together in the back of a transit van for six years or so, lock them in a sandwich factory for a while and then entomb them in a smoke-filled recording studio and you have this album.
Sounds Like
That's a weird one so we'll take what people have said...
"Afropop from Scotland?" "the world-rock hybrid Led Zeppelin never made" "the most stunning mix of western and African music since Paul Simon's Graceland" "unique hybrid of traditional music from around the globe" "Zuba have taken the best bits of African music and somehow added a Western slant/Scottishness to it" "The band Zuba are crazy: Afrobeat and Scottish folk? But it works!" "Zuba occasionally call to mind Peter Gabriel, the Afro Celts and Ireland's Kila all in a good way, especially since their sound as a whole is so confidently their own"...
Any help??? Please let us know what you think it sounds like
Zuba are a multi-cultural, multi-lingual testament to hope, humanity and the sheer joy of a good melody. Their Bassa Beat is a sound utterly unique in the field of world music, and has been decribed as "the most stunning mix of western and African music since Paul Simon's Graceland".
The song 'TOMAYZIYI' got ZUBA in the TOP20 FINALISTS of the UNISONG contest (World/Reggae category) and an HONORABLE MENTION in the final of the INTERNATIONAL SONGWRITING COMPETITION 2005 (World Music category).
"an infectious hybrid of influences which has earned Zuba critical acclaim and full dancefloors wherever they play" John Dingwall
With major appearances at the Brampton, Larmer Tree, Towersey, Edinburgh and Celtic Connections Festivals, and support slots including Manu Chao, Femi Kuti, Papa Wemba, Bhundu Boys, Ifang Bondi and Salsa Celtica.
"clever arrangements carry the imagination from Africa to Scotland, making other surprising stops along the way" ToxicPete
"Zuba-one of Britain's best world music acts" The Daily Record
How goes it Zuba, Gerry, et al? Any plans to come to n-w England any time soon?Good luck. Life here is OK except I miss the square slice sausage. And good live music.
yo man..u took Bassa to a another level.. trust me u and your band has made history with your sound.. i truly believe your music represents the Bassa people as-well as the the people of liberia... soon the whole world shall get a crave for Zuba.. good job man..
Sorry if I missed something....there had to be a first time.WauhW !I'm never on Youtube coz I'm spending too much time wankin about on http://www.thesixtyone.com/Robinho/
Are you sendin me a sausage or a link to a vid or a vid or OH OH I'm so confused! I'll go take a look. Orbitin
Caipirinha Appreciation Society Show brazilian music beyond the clichés
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For a cliché-free 2008 The last show in 2007 concentrates everything that makes CAS so special: when the world is your studio, good friends, good music and good vibes come naturally. Happy new year!
PS: Good music all year round: Beside the 10 shows on our home page, you can dig our archives for previous programmes!
Hi all in Zuba Yeah we trying to block the spammers - feel lucky we escaped it so long... Ta 4 the top add - we all gotta stick together! Gigs few and far between, but looking for a Spring tour! Let us know if you gigging. Peace & OneLove Zubopgambia
I visited your site, as I wanted to add "Mes Fantomes" to my site but it is locked up, and cannot be added. It is a very beautiful piece of music, so dynamic, vibrant, and characteristic of the very sweet music from South Africa. Please will you allow me to add it to my site for a few weeks? Any feed back will be relayed to you regarding it. I am hoping that life is sweet for all of you and that whatever you are working on at the moment is heading for great success. Thanks again for being my friends. I hope that one day I will have the pleasure of hearing and seeing you perform live somewhere in my region of Britain. Have you ever taken part in the One World Week at any of the British Universities? If you would like to do so for the early part of 2008 would you please let me know, and I will put your band forward for consideration. I would also love to interview you at some point, perhaps over the telephone instead of meeting up live since you might be very busy. If you are interested, please let me know. This would be for a television show that I will be taking part in helping to coordinate Guest Artists, and so on. Free publicity is always a good thing for anyone in public life. I hope to hear from you--soon. I send you Peace, Love, Happiness, Togetherness, Blessings, and my Deepest Respect.
Be good to yourselves and to each other. Have a nice day. Princess-L.
Nanobots will be playing at Tuts tomorrow Tuesday 16th October doors 8:30pm tickets £5 on the door or £3 from the band if you know where to find them... we will be in the 78 tonight if you want to buy any tickets
I am just stopping to wish you success and love, blessings and a lot more for this coming month. It was good to hear from you. I guess you are very busy, and if you are, that is how it should be. How then are you going to make your many billions to keep me in a style to which I am accustomed? It is down to work and more work. So yes, I am delighted to know that you are busy with work. Then I can forgive you for the months of silence. I hope that you will keep in touch more often. Have a nice day and week.
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