Assume Crash Position

Assume Crash Position doesn't have the immediate impact of Congotronics, but it shows Konono are still morphing and innovating, led by a spirit of discovery--and whatever they find and pick up along the way.

Makumbu's loping electric bass soon register some more lasting contributions. Mabasukisa possesses that essential quality of soukous guitarists, the ability to play like a human tape loop, and the way his figures lock right into the likembe and drum patterns underscores how Konono's music fits into the continuum of modern Congolese music rather than standing off to one side.

A jam band to the core, they don't craft their "songs" any more cunningly, but the effect is more song-like. Then, after 52 minutes, there's an unbuzzy finale: four minutes of acoustic likembe and aged voice which I call a coda and you may call a bore. To my medium-fi ears, this is where to begin.

Striking an ideal synthesis between noise, electronic and African music, Konono positions itself for the sound-clash rather than a crash--consider it scrap-heap soul for the polyrhythmically inclined.

Played next to Congotronics, this sounds in parts like the work of a whole different band, yet the buzz and fizz still thrill. [Jun 2010, p.104]

Assume Crash Position is certainly not an album for every taste, but the adventurous musical globetrotter will find its rhythm infectious.

It is everything Konono have given us before and more. It is one of the most vital and alive albums released so far this year and it gets better with every listen, working equally brilliantly through speakers at high volume and through earphones for an immersive experience like no other.

Even with enhanced production, Konono still sound like high prophets of lo-fi magic. Don't expect variety, though. It's all about the trance.

Even amid so many 10-minute epics, Konono also finds time to pare it down. The closer, "Nakobala Lisusu Te," features only voice and a single unamplified likembe, offering a glimpse into the soul of the band, which thankfully has been resistant to change.