Ndigal

Raw, earnest and urgent afro-funk, hard-grooving like no other. Manic funk-rock for those who believe there’s no such thing as too much percussion. Heavy, pounding drums and claves set the backdrop for bold, long-winded jams centered around guitar and organ, occasional trumpet or sax—not your typical rock’n’roll summer camp fare. Fans of the Funkees, Fela Kuti, Awesome Tapes From Africa and Sublime Frequencies labels , and even DC go-go (e.g. Chuck Brown, Trouble Funk) should not miss out on this. Play any, play all.

Disc 1:
1. (6:09) Varied call and response vocals rambling over a gnarly, messy groove with cool farfisa organ commentary
2. (9:43)** Sharp, virtuosic guitar melodies, juicy crunchy rhythm, spaced-out organ all make this somewhat like an ecstatic Gambian answer to the Doors (what if Krieger and Manzarek had left to join Fela Kuti?)
3. (8:42)* Midpaced plod with some lyrical, bluesy guitar solos all over the place, a dark groove with bright hopes for the future
4. (5:11) impeccably coordinated rhythmic throbs accentuate guitar fills and group vocal chants, prominent bassline keeps the pulse thick and alive
5. (8:16) raucous block-party anthem subdued by somewhat serious-sounding vocals, guitar wandering in a minor key—maybe this is what they played during last call
6. (9:43)** upbeat steady pounding rhythm, fuzzy guitar solos, sunshiney horn interplay keeps this interesting way past the point where any other band would lose momentum
7. (9:54)*** really cool horn and guitar interplay over pounding “tribal” drums (as uncomfortable as I feel using that term, I can’t think of a better term to describe it); wailing vocals increment the emotional tension while the rhythm section rides the groove.
8. (9:57) breezy, tropical melodies, really happy major-key twin-guitar harmonies introduce a lovely summer anthem; vocals stay subdued, awesome call-and-response interplay between guitar and horns

Disc 2:
1. (12:06)**** vaguely flamenco-styled arpeggios open a long midpaced jaunt, all instruments give it their all in a wild progression from salsa-soul to hard-grooving rock.
2. (10:29) much rawer bonus track, whistle + drums intro leads into a dark fuzzy groove with guitar solos way up in the mix (but not obtrusively so).