Likembe: Kinshasa Acoustic: Kawende et ses Copains

Kinshasa!, by Kawende et ses Copains (Plainisphare ZONE Z1, 1984), was the first of three LPs released in the mid-’80s by the Swiss recold label Plainisphaire. These pressings, all recorded in Kinshasa, in the country then known as Zaïre and today as the Democratic Republic of Congo, are notable for sounding not really very much like what is generally perceived as Congolese music at all! This is no reflection on their authenticy, though. I’m sure they’re quite typical of the sort of genuinely popular Congolese music that is never recorded, or recorded but not considered “commercially viable” outside of the country.

The sound here is loose and unpolished, probably recorded in one take. The musicians are not slick but all the more affecting for that. I don’t know who Kawende and his group are as the liner notes give little information. I’m sure you’ll enjoy this!

Kawende et ses Copains – Kinshasa!


Kawende et ses Copains – Tshura


Kawende et ses Copains – Sawande


Kawende et ses Copains – Ekulusu


Kawende et ses Copains – Mtoto Mpotevou


Kawende et ses Copains – Kabibi


Kawende et ses Copains – Eh Ya Ele


Kawende et ses Copains – Tshingoma


Kawende et ses Copains – Sosange Mosi

Download Kinshasa! as a zipped file here. I will soon be posting the other two albums in this series, Nasiwedi (Plainisphare ZONE Z-4, 1985), by Orchestre Sim-Sim International, and Malo (Plainisphaire ZONE Z-5, 1986), by Ali & Tam’s avec l’Orchestre Malo.