Probably the greatest find I had at Bonnaroo, the Samosa stand aside, was the Afromotive
Blissfully stumbling around somewhere near 2AM, I found a side tent that was spitting out pulsating rhythms. The drumming was African, the pulse stank of Afrobeat and the soloing was free and phenomenal. I thought I was in a dream, not a trippy one that involved elves and talking blueberry pie, but a musical moment that I had imagined and filed in the back of my mind under: it would be simply fantastic if music like this existed. True, there is a formula, but it was handed down by a master and it never fails to move my feet; granted, there are other Afrobeat bands, even good ones, but the quality of musicianship and the fresh approach would hold its own with any of them. The Afromotive - Thursday, August 14th, at the Eighteenth Street Lounge.
(The groove at about 30s in is sick)
