Bringing a taste of Senegal to Metronome on a dark October night, Seckou Keita and the Homeland Band performed a rich and blistering set...
Senegal has a rich musical tradition, drawn from many genres and cultures (both inside and outside the country) and it’s one that I’ve for a long time admired. Baaba Maal, Daby Balde, Mansour Seck and Orchestra Baoba all feature somewhere in my collection, but after tonight I’ve added one more name to my iTunes library: Seckou Keita.
Largely performing tracks from his latest album Homeland: Chapter 1, Kora player Seckou and his brilliantly rehearsed Homeland Band blistered through an eclectic set that got pretty much everyone dancing, or at least nodding heads in an approving fashion.
Having been born into the griot tradition – think West African bards - and trained by his grandfather and uncles from a very young age, it’s fitting that both the album, and tonight’s performance, begin with Bienvenue and Seckou’s complex kora part as backing to the rich burr of Mandinka Culture preserver Abdoulaye Sidibé’s French spoken word.
Numbers such as Chaque Jour have a wonderful swing and swagger to them, with an intricately woven tapestry of instrumental lines all working together beautifully. As well as drawing on spoken word, hip hop and griot, Seckou also strays into the poppier end of the spectrum, which, for me, produces less affecting moments, although no less successful and sweet on their own terms.
What struck me most, apart from just how tight the band were, and how well they gelled, was the sense of fun and enjoyment coming off the stage in waves. Seckou’s beaming smile, and knowing grins as the band fell into lock-step dance, lifted the already buoyant mood and gave even the most buttoned-up audience members licence to let it all hang out.
Now to the Homeland Band. Giving incredible vocals all night, with equally incredible energy and elan, was vocalist Korka Dieng. Moustapha Gaye brought soukous style guitar, with the very talented Moussa Ngom on keys, Mouctar Diongue on tight-as-you-like drums, bedrock of the groove Modou Gueye on bass, and the dynamo that is Papis Cissokho on percussion.
Seckou’s mastery of the 22-stringed, gourd-based instrument that is the Kora is a joy to behold. At once melodic and percussive, with volley after volley of sublime runs, somewhere between harp and guitar, he could easily carry a solo gig. But with such a great band behind him, tonight was a beautiful, buoyant celebration of music, togetherness and cross-cultural adventuring.
Seckou Keita and The Homeland Band performed at Metronome on 30th October 2024.
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