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RECORDS: VIRUNGA VOLCANO FEET ON FIRE UJUMBE VIRUNGA ROOTS - VOL 1
Language: | Swahili |
| Genre: | Soukous Rumba congolais Benga |
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This band is comprised of musicians from Zaire/Congo, Kenya and Tanzania, under the leadership of the talented singer and composer, Samba Mapangala. He is originally from the Congo, and sang soukous with groups Super Bella Bella and Les Kinois in Kinshasa. He decided to start up for himself, but in contrast to several other musicians from Zaire/Congo who relocated to Paris, Samba Mapangala stayed in Africa. In 1975 he went to Uganda with Les Kinois. A couple of years later he continued on to Nairobi, Kenya. There he formed Virunga, named after a volcano in Congo.
The group became enormously popular across the whole of East Africa, and have toured Africa, Europe and the USA. Virunga has added East African elements, such as Kenyan benga, to their soukous. In addition, one finds elements of jazz and blues in the group’s music that has become a different soukous variant from what one usually hears. The group that sings in Swahili has had a long line of hits in East Africa and exerts strong influence on the music life of Kenya and Tanzania. Virunga have released three albums that are accessible in Europe, together with several disks with companies in Kenya. Following their tour in 1997, bandleader Samba Mapangala went to live in the USA.
Relevant artists: Remmy Ongala Tatunane Sam Mangwana Kekele Orchestra Super Mazembe Mbilia Bel
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Last Modified:
22 nov 2009
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VIRUNGA VOLCANO 
Earthworks/1990
A collection of the group’s early hits. Glittering guitar play; several long tracks with rocking guitar-based soukous that can seem difficult to grasp at first. But you get a lot out of it, once you get right inside this music. A classic.
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FEET ON FIRE Stern`s Africa/1991
Virunga was on tour in Europe in 1991 and went to the London studios afterward; this album of swinging dance music was the result. There are good arrangements that also include the brass section that characterises the album; these carry mainly the driving play of the two guitarists, Mokoli Sesti and Bavon Masudi. Vital, elegant and earthy!
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UJUMBE Earthworks/Stern`s Africa/2001
This album is perhaps not newly-created, musically speaking; there is too much of the familiar soukous and rumba. Yet there is something irresistible about this music. Samba Mapangala has a beautiful voice, high and clear, and there is something liberating about what he does. He is also a very adept arranger. His new release of Virunga starts off with brilliant guitar trills, produced by soloist Caien Madoka, with rhythm guitarist Bopol Mansiamina right behind and, not least, the close and melodious following of Boss Matuta on bass. Behind the drums sits Komba Mafala; no rhythm boxes here! Add to this Yuma Kasongo and Nzeza Freddy with sharp and precise riffs on saxophone and the picture is complete. Much of the reason for this being great lies in the fact that that Sampa’s soulful voice lies over the rumba backing with his own melody, creating a fine dynamic in the play, lifting it above the prevailing soukous. My favourites on the album are the acoustic “Muniache”, a very positive surprise, and the laid-back “Vijana”, with wah-wah-pedal on the guitar. Here the guys resist the temptation to throw themselves into well-known sebene, and score big. There are many things on the album that are pleasing to hear; optimistic and exhilarating.
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VIRUNGA ROOTS - VOL 1 Mapangala Records
Maybe it is because this was the kind of music I was first acquainted with living in East Africa in the beginning of the 1990's, maybe it is because of Samba Mapangala's clear and lively voice or the sophistication with which this music is always performed: Anyway, I just love it. The music got a lot of airplay at for instance Radio Tanzania and it was heard everywhere, together with other guitar based soukous/kwassa kwassa like Kanda Bongo Man. This CD is comprised of recordings made by Virunga in the 1980's, half of the sessions in Nairobi where the group was based, and the other half in Paris. The sound quality is excellent. Virunga's hits "Vunja mifupa" and "Mtumba" are included. The first is as representative of the best soukous songs of the period as any smash hit by Bongoman or Pepe Kallé, it is just magnificent. "Mtumba" gives fine variation to the entire set of 8 songs, with its more funky or jazzy rhythm. Virunga has always presented very fine guitarists, several of them are found here; in the Nairobi sessions Bavon Masudi and Django, in Paris Syran Mbenza and Bopol Mansiamina, to mention some of them. These sessions work well toghether on this CD, the Paris versions with a slightly slicker sound, (synth added), the Nairobi sessions with a saxophone row. Maybe Virunga over the years has developed an even more mature sound. But the energy of Virunga in this period, and at the same time the band's laidback perfection, can hardly be surpassed. This is great dance music.
Click record company for sound samples.
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