Gangbé Brass Band

A brass band from Benin, the Gangbé Brass Band was formed in 1994 around a dozen musicians. The band's name (Gangbé means "sound of metal" in Fon, a language of southern Benin) immediately sets it apart as a brass band, blending jazz sounds with traditional African percussion. Largely influenced by one of its heroes, Fela Kuti, the Gangbé Brass Band quickly built its repertoire around afrobeat, funk and soukouss. Their first album, Gangbé, was released in 1998, and led to an international tour to promote it, with no fewer than 35 dates in Europe and Canada. After signing a contract with the Contrejour label in Brussels, the Gangbé Brass Band followed this up in 2001 with the album Togbé, which means "the voice of the ancestors" and is a tribute to Beninese traditions. In 2004, the band continued in this vein with Whendo, which means "roots", and which, like its two predecessors, is a tribute to their mentor Fela Kuti with the track "Remember Fela". Further albums follow: Assiko in 2008 and Go Slow to Lagos in 2015, on which they collaborate with Fela's son Femi Kuti. In 2020, Nod (New Orleans Dream) was released, celebrating the meeting of two popular Afro-descendant and intercontinental jazz cultures.

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