At World Cafe Live in Philadelphia last weekend Debo Band drew on Ethiopian pop music from the 1970s and many other sources. The band's spirit of adventure made it a pleasing performance. (Courtesy Photo)
KEVIN L. CARTER, FOR THE INQUIRER
Hard-driving African music held court Saturday night at World Cafe Live. And though rhythms of Africa and its diaspora dominated the proceedings, drums had very little to do with this domination.
Debo Band, from Boston, has gone all in on the Ethiopian pop music of the 1970s, a veritable golden age of creativity in that venerable land. Though other groups, including Either/Orchestra, Debo’s Hub homeboys, have done homage to this music, none is as adventurous or unabashedly traditional as Debo.
Read more at Philadelphia Inquirer.
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Watch: Debo Band: Ethiopian Funk On A Muggy Afternoon (NPR)
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Related:
Debo Band: Ethiopian Funk, Reinvented (NPR)
Interview with Debo Band’s Founder Danny Mekonnen (TADIAS)
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