KONGO DIA NTOTILA / コンゴ・ディア・ントティラ / 360 / レコード

2015年にロンドンで結成されたアフロバンド KONGO DIA NTOTILA 。
コンゴ出身の二人をリズム隊に置いた重厚感たっぷりなグルーブに、フュージョン、ブルースやレゲエが織り交ざる都会的なコンゴ・ジャズ・クロスオーヴァーを聴かせる。



'360°’ is the second record from Kongo-Jazz outfit, Kongo Dia Ntotila. The 10-track album pays homage to some of Africa’s finest dance music styles - revived, urbanised, and seamlessly fused with a heavy injection of jazz. The ensemble consists of Mulele Matondo (bass), John Kelly (guitar), Mbouta Kissangwa (drums), Diala Sakuba (guitar) and UK jazz horn players William Scott (saxophone) and Mike Soper (trumpet). BBC 6 Music's Tom Robinson described them as “totally authentic - as good as anything you get coming out of Africa... a great combination of sophistication, energy, musicianship, and sheer life-affirming spiritual uplift!” ‘360°’ is all of those things and more. In the title track, Kongo Dia Ntotila explores the urban sound of African London, inspired by the current new jazz scene of the UK capital, it’s grungy, joyful and funked up. There is the pain of ‘Naleli’, a song that laments the suffering of Africa with a Jazz-Reggae sound. The joyful fusion of album opener, ‘Kongo’, as Kinshasa collides with London Jazz in a celebration of Congolese roots. The album sees the band move collectively through the sounds and styles of Africa exploring notes of joy, celebration, pain, and protest. Although Kongo Dia Ntotila has brought Jazz and Blues influences into their music, the heart of their sound is rooted firmly in the motherland. Get ready to dance your way through an intense, immersive and a seriously fun musical journey. With something for everyone, from dance floor divas to masterful musicians, ‘360’° will be appreciated for its catchy tunes as much as its technical artistry and sheer innovation.