Bringing together two Yoruba musical traditions, with different accents, from different sides of the Atlantic – Havana meets Lagos in London – with Lokki Terra and Dele Sosimi forming Cubafrobeat.
Kishon Khan’s Lokkhi Terra have over a number of years now been quietly establishing themselves as one of London’s more unusual heavyweight outfits, described as “probably the world’s best Afrobeat-Cuban-Bangladeshi groups (Songlines magazine). Included amongst the band members are London’s top Cuban musicians, adding their infectious rich musical history to the city’s melting pot. When the band wanted to explore Cuban links with another of their favourite traditions, Afrobeat, who better to bring in then one of the Afrobeat originators – maestro Dele Sosimi.
The band is an All Star cast of the UK’s Cuban and Afrobeat scenes. Featuring the two pianos of Kishon Khan (Hugh Masekela, Tony Allen) and Dele Sosimi (Fela Kuti), Cuban percussionist/vocalist Javier Camilo (Lokkhi Terra), Cuban Conga and Bata and Timbales Maestros Oreste ‘Sambroso’ Noda (Jazz Jamaica) and Hammadi Valdes (Ariwo), Cuban bassist Frank Portuondo (Carlos Acosta), a horn section led by Justin Thurgur (Bellowhead) and Graeme Flowers (KyleEastwood, Kylie Minogue) as well as virtuoso guitarist Phil Dawson (Mulato Astatke) and drummer Pat Illingworth (James Taylor Quartet). This is music from the heart of London’s global scene.