Haitian Congo grooves and artisanal Belgian dub – what reads like an unlikely combination feels like ten slaps in the face per minute. Chouk Bwa continue their collaboration with The Ångstromers and already the title of »Ayiti Kongo Dub #1« implies that the transatlantic exchange has by no means reached its end with these three pieces. All the better, because these stripped tracks still leave room for more – not in terms of quality, of course, but with regard to sound and structure. For the frantic rhythms of »Agwetaroyo« counterpointed by bleeping sirens, the hard-clapping four-to-the-floor beat of »Vini Wè« and the wonderfully out-of-control pulses of »Similòm« are not soaked in reverb, but only coated with some extra dub. At times this is reminiscent one of the massive protrusion of Nihiloxica’s music, if it had been remixed by Hieroglyphic Being: somehow very industrial and odd, yet absolutely tailored for the dancefloor. It remains to be seen whether the next part of the »Ayiti Kongo Dub« series will offer a more lush sound. And if not? Then that would be anything but a bad thing.
Various Artists
Synthesizing The Silk Roads
Ostinato