Les Têtes Brûlées:
New Release Just Announced
The
response was so positive after the triumphant return of Les Têtes Brûlées to
New York’s Central Park Summerstage this past July that it was decided to
get the band into the New York studios in order to capture the band’s
intense sound and energy. It was one of those electric moments in which
music magic really works – a spontaneous three day studio session in which
ideas and concepts were translated onto disc in fantastic form. The result
is perhaps the most exciting album for Les Têtes Brûlées since their initial
debut with the late Zanzibar.
The
album represents a return to roots, and catches Les Têtes Brûlées in
true form. According to FM Groove director and producer Francis M’Bappe,
the album “keeps it tradition, easy and simple… this time around, Les Têtes
Brûlées give the public what they want.” The result, as previewed by
AfricaSounds.com, is quite an opus reflecting, accurately, just how Les
Têtes Brûlées sound live and direct.
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According to the album's producer, Francis M'Bappe of FM
Groove Productions, Les Tetes Brulees essentially give the public what the
public wants... music that is essentially funky
and traditional. Francis M'Bappe envisions a new direction for Les Têtes Brûlées,
evidence of which can be seen on this album. The new direction - or
movement - one of unity as two surprisingly compatible music styles, Bikutsi and
Reggae, get woven together into a musical tapestry of symbolic unification.
Several of the songs on this latest production capture this feeling and new
direction. |
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Reggae's
4/4 beat meets Bikutsi's 6/8 rhythm
of the forest. The result is a
remarkable integration of both elements, losing neither and ending up with a
new sound that is all-encompassing, even unifying. The song “Repentance”
thus represents a major theme and symbol of this album as it reveals this
unification by successfully combining elements of reggae and Bikutsi. The
Reggae element is one which will capture the interest of a greater public
and draw their attention to the excellent fusion opportunities between
Reggae and Bikutsi. |
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“Lions” is a tribute to the Cameroon national soccer team and the country’s
dominance in the sport. The song has a classic Makossa rhythm with
Caribbean elements and trumpet playing by bandleader Jean-Marie Ahanda in
the style of Louisiana. The song has a fat, fuzzy bassline reminiscent of
the vintage Makossa hits of the late 70s. The musical theme behind the
“Lions” is that of traveling as the song incorporates sounds from many places. |
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“Mannele” acts as the band anthem of the album including the shouted “Hey,
Les Tetes Brulees” and features an extended jam from the group including
brilliant moments on lead balafon-guitar, percussion and bass. |
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“Ce
n’est pas normal” featured Jean-Marie Ahanda on vocals with some critical
commentary on what is really going on in the world right now. Again, this
song strives towards unity and strategically bring in the Reggae 4/4 element
to the 6/8 Bikutsi beat. |
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Les Têtes Brûlées - Be Happy
With their most accomplished recording yet, "Be Happy," Les Têtes Brûlées,
are ready to present a new and supercharged Bikutsi-Funk to the world. More intricate and
founded than their previous three albums, "Be Happy" is a true mosaic of styles,
a veritable stew spanning the African Diaspora and adding a new twist to the meaning of
these "burnt-out heads."
Recorded to completion in Paris, "Be Happy" is available for immediate signing
and distribution the world over. Les Têtes Brûlées are presently in Yaoundé, the
capital of Cameroon, rehearsing a wealth of new materials. Having already completed two
world tours to Europe, America and Japan, and with a feature film under their belt
(1988’s "Man No Run" by French director Claire Denis), Les Têtes Brûlées
is an established act that not only produces great African rhythms, but also has the most
unique and identifiable image of any group from Africa.
Bandleader, painter and visionary Jean-Marie Ahanda originally came up with the concept
for Les Têtes Brûlées when returning to Cameroon after a sojourn in Paris in 1988. He
was struck by the complex Bikutsi rhythms being played by the Beti people of the Southern
forests surrounding the Cameroonian capital of Yaoundé. Jean-Marie’s vision and plan
was brilliant and a complete departure from the clean-cut mainstream image that
accompanied Makossa music in Cameroon. Les Têtes Brûlées would wear torn clothes to
represent the economic situation of Cameroon, would sport backpacks to symbolize the child
that an African mother would carry on
her back, would paint their faces and bodies in intricate multicolor designs that payed
hommage to Beti traditions. They would shave their hair into mohawks with tufts spouting
out at odd angles, and add to their frantic dancing a soccer ball in honor of
Cameroon’s favorite sport.
The band took Cameroon by storm with their great vibes and shock element, and next Europe,
Asia and the Americas. No one had been prepared for what Les Têtes Brûlées had in store
for them.
It was more than just a revolutionary image, however, that makes this band so great and
unique. The group literally popularized Bikutsi by proving that it could be taken
seriously as a popular musical form, once electrified. The traditional balafon (xylophone)
orchestras of the Beti were emulated on the modern electric guitar. Although the classic
bandleader Messi Martin was the first to experiment with this technique, Les Têtes
Brûlées now use more modern materials, in this case a thin long strip of foam mattress
weaved in and out of the guitar strings on the bridge of the instrument. Once the guitar
is amplified and plucked in a special fashion with an extra thick pick, a funky
"thonk" sound is produced that in many ways emulates the balafon. Voilá, the
modern guitar balafon! Rather than just rehash the traditional Bikutsi that was already
being heard in the villages surrounding Yaoundé, the group fused their juiced-up Bikutsi
rhythms with a fast and furious rock beat. The result, the press claims Les Têtes
Brûlées the "Bad Boys" of Cameroon, with a musical style and image that was
everything that the establishment detested. A true P-Funk of Africa had been born!
Les Têtes Brûlées, however, keep bending the rules as only they can. One listen to this
newest recording, "Be Happy," will prove that they have taken the formula one
step further. What started off as a Bikutsi-Rock has now been transformed into a
Bikutsi-Funk, a true melting pot where the sheer number of musical influences is mind
boggling. Here is a work of a group that has truly seen the world, and opened themselves
to its variety.
The cassette that you have before you is one of the more complex and exciting African
fusion albums that you will ever get your
hands on. An an album whose selections will not grow old or tedious. This is music to grow
with. "Be Happy" ranks in the upper tear of African albums in terms of creative
punch. The group takes Bikutsi music and sends it up into the atmosphere, where it melds
with traces of Jazz, Samba, Gospel, Cajun, New Age, Makossa, Afropop, Funk, Acid Jazz,
Accordian, Malagasy, Rock’n’Roll, and even Griot kora playing. On each repeat
listening, you are bound to hear something new that will make you smile. As the title song
clearly states; "Some dance to the lyrics, others dance to the beat, but all I wanna
do is make you dance... Be happy, just be happy."
TRACK LISTING
Les Têtes Brûlées "BE HAPPY"
1. BE HAPPY 3’31
2. BIKUTSI FUNK 5’45
3. ANTI-MOSQUITTO 5’19
4. TALES 7’02
5. OYILU 5’51
6. CATHEDRALE 3’51
7. KATMA 6’05
8. EDING 6’34
9. COCO 6’48
10. BE HAPPY (EXTENDED VERSION) 4’40
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