Gangbe Brass Band

Imagine the sound of military brass bands, voodoo ritual chants and rhythms, scratchy American jazz records, with a dash of Fela’s Afrobeat, and you can almost hear Benin’s explosive and colorful Gangbe Brass Band. Gangbe delves into the rich voodoo culture and the ancient songs of their country – the legendary Dahomey – in order to produce an ecstatic contemporary sound. Complex jazz harmonies on saxophones, trombones, trumpets are fused with African percussion, creating trance-inducing rhythms that are powerful as on the dance floor and concert hall as at funerals and weddings. The juxtaposition of sounds of Gangbé Brass Band–at once hard-hitting and sweet, simultaneously mischievous and soulful–catches listeners off guard, making it hard for them to decide whether to stare in awe or step onto the dance floor. Either way, Gangbé Brass Band conjures up a place and time that is both real and magical. Don’t miss their long awaited return to Joe’s Pub, where they made their New York debut in 2002.

“The first few notes from the Gangbe Brass Band ring out like a clarion call: These musicians will celebrate anything that gets them drunk on sound. In the band’s dizzyingly gorgeous horn lines, rolling vamps carry sunny African Chorales, and polyrhythmic voodoo grooves host harmonies that slide in all directions at once. The music just plain sings.”
– New York Times