The PAN M 360 team has a strong presence at the Festival international Nuits d’Afrique (FINA), with our contributors reporting daily on what they’ve seen and heard at the concerts presented in Montreal until July 23.
The Festive Spirit of Abondance
Yesterday, the Loto-Québec stage was the setting for a marvellous marriage of Guadeloupean and Martiniquean musical cultures. Comprising two female singers, two percussionists (one on drums and one on drums), a keyboardist, a saxophonist-flute player and a bassist, Abondance wasted no time in proving the aptness of their name.
The musicians, all equally talented, circulated through solos to the fast rhythms of the percussionists. The singers were alternating center stage, often taking time to interact with the audience. And the audience was very much part of the concert! We were asked to sing a few call-and-response-like melodies, and even to vocally recreate the rhythm of the ka drum, a traditional Guadeloupean instrument, to enhance a very special song.
Abondance is definitely an irresistible dose of fun. Synchronized vocal passages, harmonies, restless bass lines, complex but driving rhythms, a hint of jazz, all with a little group choreography… the spirit of playful release mingled with the persuasive display of talent. All that remained was to dance. An easy enough task under the circumstances. Especially as, at the end of the show, Abondance invited another group of people on stage for a carnival-style number. At that point, it’s not abundance anymore, it’s simply the pinnacle.
Théo Reinhardt
Living in the Moment with Kobo Town
Under the direction of singer and bandleader Drew Gonsalves, the audience at the Esplanade Tranquile was treated with a swift trip to Kobo Town and back – the historic district of Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, where calypso was born. Playing to the five o’clock audience, the weather was suitably tropical as well, but fortunately, the band played a breezy set of numbers that took our minds off the heat.
But of course, the band got cooking eventually, and with their signature blend of calypso, reggae, and soca, the seven-piece created a vibrant and dynamic atmosphere. Though they might have benefited from a better time slot, eventually a sizable crowd had formed and the Montreal audience, themselves a melange of various cultures and backgrounds, responded enthusiastically to Kobo Town’s performance. Bodies swayed, hips moved, and smiles adorned the faces of the crowd all around.
What was evident throughout the set is how much this band means to frontman Drew Gonsalves, a way of coming to terms with his identity it was clear that music for Drew is a means to an end, a vehicle for change for the world we want to live in. And for a moment, we were all there.
Varun Swarup
Waahli’s Multilingual Poetry
Waahli treated the crowd gathered in front of the Scène TD – Radio-Canada to a very personal program. The Montreal artist paid tribute to his family and musical origins with a succession of his best-known songs. It didn’t take long before the audience was dancing to the rhythm of Waahli’s trilingual hip-hop (French, English, Haitian Creole). Waahli’s energy was contagious. On several occasions, he encouraged the crowd to sing along and to move closer to the stage to enjoy the party.
The success of the evening was also due to the solid trio of musicians accompanying the founding member of Nomadic Massive. A multi-sounding keyboard, fiery drums and a sustained bass groove perfectly underlined Waahli’s fine poetry. At times, Waahli swapped the microphone for his guitar. The crowd was certainly ready to spend the whole evening in Waahli’s company.
Elena Mandolini
Only the Righteous: The Uplifting Retro Vibe of Montreal Funk
Photo credit: André Rival
Montreal Funk/Soul band Only the Righteous took to the Balattou stage yesterday as part of ICI Musique’s Les incontournables series. Their first set was a feel-good retro-chill Philly Sound 1970-style set featuring covers of Marvin (Gaye), Curtis (Mayfield) and even Michael (Jackson). A good cover band, where the leader, Clerel, handles the falsetto with as much ease as his illustrious predecessors. It was in the second set of the evening that the group formed in 2017 raised the stakes. An invitee took to the stage, Shem G, a skilled emcee whose rhymes and linguistic tones were hard-hitting and formidably effective. His extravagant style really got the evening somewhere else. A Rap Battle was fought out with another emcee, Markus Dillon, who was more conventional in his approach. Then it was on to a fast-paced, incisive Funk, mixed with Soul and (too) occasionally traditional African stylistic elements. The crowd, initially fairly still, found itself on its feet, bosoms wagging and faces smiling in a finale that left us with the impression that this band will be back in the news, especially the day they release a debut album (which is sure to happen).
Frédéric Cardin
Ayrad, the Art of Making A Crowd Dance
Photo credit: André Rival
With their interesting blend of Moroccan music and rock, Ayrad set the TD-Radio-Canada stage alight, much to the delight of the many festival-goers who turned out for the first evening of free shows offered by Nuits d’Afrique. The contagious energy of the six musicians on stage quickly brought those seated comfortably on the lawn to their feet, certainly not expecting such a powerful performance. Before long, the quiet crowd had metamorphosed, and were dancing in every possible way – a few could even be seen headbanging.
The rock took over as the flautist swapped this instrument for a bass, and the singer began to play guitar while dancing in perfect sync with his musicians. The show came to a climax, however, when Brad Barr of the Barr Brothers took the stage as a surprise, offering us a fiery guitar solo while the drummer played in response to the rhythm the singer struck with his tam-tam. A great way to start the week!
Arielle Caron
