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`Havana cantina, Kinshasa slum, or psychedelic club- this outfit would tear the roof off anywhere.' The Independent
Congolese super-band Staff Benda Bilili return to the UK this May to play a string of special live dates following the nationwide release of feature film Benda Bilili.
Staff Benda Bilili's inspirational live shows and extraordinary story have caused a stir across the globe. The band name translates as "look beyond appearances" - literally: "put forward what is hidden." A group of paraplegic street musicians who live in and around Kinshasa zoo in the Democratic Republic of Congo, they consider themselves the real journalists of Kinshasa. Their songs document and comment on events relating to their everyday experiences, and resonate with the pulse of Congolese rumba, of Cuban swing and, at times, even of the Godfather Of Soul himself.
The core of the group consists of four singer/guitarists perched on spectacular customised tricycles, backed by an energetic rhythm section, and topped off with the infectious guitar-like sounds of a teenage prodigy, who plays a one-stringed electric lute he designed and built himself out of a tin can.
The band triumphed at the Cannes Film Festival last year with Benda Bilili - a full-length feature film directed by Renaud Barret and Florent de la Tullaye (aka Belle Kinoise). The film has been met with great critical acclaim and is will open in cinemas across Britain on 18 March, distributed by Trinity Films.
The band's acclaimed debut album TrÞs TrÞs Fort is out now on Crammed.
'Pure adrenalin from start to finish' (Rock 'N Reel)
'The funkiest, grittiest sound yet out of Congo' (Mojo)
`Heart-tugging melodies ride on sweetly ragged vocal harmonies; the rhythm section and guitar work sway between rumba, soul, funk and blues. Extraordinary story, extraordinary music..' (Independent, Tim Cummings)
'Real street music that resounds with a lust for life' (Metro)
`Havana cantina, Kinshasa slum, or psychedelic club- this outfit would tear the roof off anywhere.' The Independent
Congolese super-band Staff Benda Bilili return to the UK this May to play a string of special live dates following the nationwide release of feature film Benda Bilili.
Staff Benda Bilili's inspirational live shows and extraordinary story have caused a stir across the globe. The band name translates as "look beyond appearances" - literally: "put forward what is hidden." A group of paraplegic street musicians who live in and around Kinshasa zoo in the Democratic Republic of Congo, they consider themselves the real journalists of Kinshasa. Their songs document and comment on events relating to their everyday experiences, and resonate with the pulse of Congolese rumba, of Cuban swing and, at times, even of the Godfather Of Soul himself.
The core of the group consists of four singer/guitarists perched on spectacular customised tricycles, backed by an energetic rhythm section, and topped off with the infectious guitar-like sounds of a teenage prodigy, who plays a one-stringed electric lute he designed and built himself out of a tin can.
The band triumphed at the Cannes Film Festival last year with Benda Bilili - a full-length feature film directed by Renaud Barret and Florent de la Tullaye (aka Belle Kinoise). The film has been met with great critical acclaim and is will open in cinemas across Britain on 18 March, distributed by Trinity Films.
The band's acclaimed debut album TrÞs TrÞs Fort is out now on Crammed.
'Pure adrenalin from start to finish' (Rock 'N Reel)
'The funkiest, grittiest sound yet out of Congo' (Mojo)
`Heart-tugging melodies ride on sweetly ragged vocal harmonies; the rhythm section and guitar work sway between rumba, soul, funk and blues. Extraordinary story, extraordinary music..' (Independent, Tim Cummings)
'Real street music that resounds with a lust for life' (Metro)