Bongostan from Opole in Poland is the dancehall octet of Kinga Berkowicz, Paweł Kinder, Krzysiek Ogiela, Jacek Halaba, Kamil Majewski, Tomek Bartoszewski, Bartek Drozd and Paweł Mrocheń.
Bongostan
With a flourish of instruments Bongostan bring bright sunshine into the room. Having recently reviewed a number of bands from Poland, this is so far away from the majority of the local sounds that it stands out immediately, add to which the off-beat of reggae as you know always catches my attention, so how could I do anything other than recommend you take a moment out of your day. More than all of that these players know how to work together to deliver sounds which slide into the movement of the audience. Having been through various line-up changes over the past four years whilst honing their focus, which reflect on injustice, they have developed sounds which resonate with those who get to hear them.
Bongostan have a sharp hand on their out-put and deliver music which enables them to run some experimental twists to the genre, though I personally enjoy the more pure delivery. The combinations of electronics and instrumentation work well and offer an interesting variance to the material. Singing predominately in Polish, I would posit this is the main reason they have not had a broader international take-up, which is a great pity and a reflection not on their relevance to the world of music, rather the narrow focus of many who listen to music.
Rasta Kasta – Bongostan is available on iTunes*
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