Konono No. 1 - Assume Crash Position

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5...according to our Business Lady on Fri 21 May, 2010.

Oh happy day...Mingiedi Mawangu's awesome Konono No. 1 return with yet another fantastic selection of likembe jams that further expand on the Konono principle of creating vast hypnotic percussive grooves using thumb pianos (likembe, kalimba...they go by many names) hooked up to primitive, junkyard pick-ups and amplification. Universally liked by everyone, these Konono records are an absolute treat. Perfect for both dancing fun and peaceful reflection. This time we see the group meeting its growing western audience halfway with an increased use of studio trickery to bring clarity and form to the music. They've added a little guitar and bass this time around and there's loads more singing too. It's obvious that a little more time has been spent cleaning up the tracks but, don't worry, it's very subtle and the raw, liveliness of their previous outings is left intact. I couldn't say enough good things about this record, it's a truly beautiful sound Mingiedi Mawangu and his crew have created. A must for all.

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"Assume Crash Position" is the keenly-awaited new album from Congolese street band Konono No.1, whose 2005 debut was acclaimed by the press, the public and an army of celebrity admirers including Radiohead's Thom Yorke, Beck, Björk (whose album Volta featured a guest Konono performance), and Herbie Hancock.

Once again recorded in Kinshasa, the vast capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo by Congotronics series producer Vincent Kenis, ‘Assume Crash Position’ sees their trademark junkyard sonics and hypnotic percussive grooves (created using thumb pianos and drums made from scrap metal and disused car parts) further enhanced with electric guitars and bass and a wider range of vocalists.

Mixing traditonal bazombo trance music with the distortion of their modern home-made equipment their sound on "Assume Crash Position" is deeper, more layered and ethereal, without losing any of that signature raw power and driving energy. Gloriously extended full band tracks take off like never before but also, for the first time, we hear Konono stripped right back to their essence: the album's final song, "Nakobala Lisusu Te", features just the band's founder and leader, Mingiedi (now in his late-seventies) and his likembe.

When Konono No.1's "Congotronics" album was released in 2005 reactions were exceptional: the band earned a BBC Award for World Music, the press enthused about their sound and in 2009 they were even listed among the best records of the decade in Mojo, the Guardian and Observer Music Monthly.

Personnel: Mingiedi Mawangu, Augustin Makuntima Mawangu (likembe), Menga Waku (vocals, bass likembe), Antoine Ndombele (bass likembe), Pauline Mbuka Nsiala (vocals), Vincent Visi (snare drum), Ndofusu Mbiyavanga (percussion, tam tam), Duki Makumbu (bass guitar) plus guests: Mbuyamba Nyunyi (bass likembe), Kabongo Tshisense and Kalenga Ditu (likembe), Felix Manuaku ‘Pepe Felly’, Vincent Kenis, Nzila Mabasukisa (guitar)