Kobo Town

"Merging calypso, roots reggae, acoustic performance, dub studio techniques and Trinidadian/Jamaican cultures, Kobo Town is a unique, stylistic, transnational composite of rhythm, poetry and activist journalism."- Brent Hagerman, Exclaim!

... the gift of mockery with which I'm cursed
is just an insect biting Fame behind,
a vermin swimming in a glass of wine,
that, dipped out with a finger, bound to bite
its saving host, ungrateful parasite,
whose sting, between the cleft arse and its seat,
reminds Authority man is just meat...
Derek Walcott, The Spoiler's Return

Founded by bandleader Drew Gonsalves, Kobo Town is named after the historic neighborhood in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, where traditional calypso (kaiso) was born amid the boastful, humourous and militant chants of the roaming stickfighters. Situated near the fishermen's wharf, the area was a site of constant defiance and conflict, a place where sticks and stones, songs and verses clashed with the bayonets and batons of colonial rule. For the members of the eight-piece outfit, the name suggests an origin as well as a destination.

Exploring the rich lyrical tradition and compelling rhythms of calypso's formative years - the age of the Roaring Lion, Mighty Spoiler, Lord Invader, King Radio and Attila the Hun - Kobo Town strives to demonstrate the contemporary relevance of their art by engaging the pressing concerns of our time. Domestic violence, the US war on Iraq, the paradoxes of globalization, the ongoing state of Caribbean dependency, and the bittersweet experience of immigration are all treated within their wide and varied repertory.

Calypso is an art that developed in dialogue with other musical forms. The members of Kobo Town, who come to calypso from all over the musical map, hope to continue and extend this tradition of rhythmic and melodic cross-pollination. While rooted in old time calypso and various West Indian folk musics, their music also draws heavily on dub poetry, roots reggae, zouk, son montuno, funk and jazz.

For Kobo Town, Trinidad's musical heritage is a living, growing body of work, with a continuing importance in their lives, the West Indies and the world. While exploring new sounds and arrangements, their songs resonate with the satire, storytelling and social concern that lie at the center of Trinidad's national art.

ABOUT DREW GONSALVES, BANDLEADER

Drew Gonsalves is a singer and songwriter whose music blends traditional calypso, dub and reggae. Born and raised in Diego Martin, Trinidad, Gonsalves was keenly interested in music from an early age. As a child he joined the folk choir of his school, which performed Afro-Trinidadian Creole songs and dances such as the jhuba and the belay. Gonsalves' later songs would draw much of their influence from the folkloric music of the West Indies.

As a teenager, Drew emigrated to Canada, and began studying the classical and flamenco guitar, as well as the cuatro, a small four stringed guitar native to Venezuela and Trinidad. While in school, Gonsalves began to write songs dealing with many of the political and social struggles facing the Caribbean. In 1992, he formed a reggae/calypso/funk fusion group called Outcry along with bassist Stuart Watkins and drummer Robert Milicevic. Drawing inspiration from reggae artists such as Steel Pulse, Lintown Kwesi Johnson, Mutabaruka, Yellowman and Peter Tosh,as well as from traditional Calypsonians such as the Roaring Lion, Lord Beginner and the Mighty Terror, Outcry sought to achieve a sound that expressed both the deep roots and vibrant innovations of West Indian protest music.

In 1999, Outcry released the album New World Raging which was received with great enthusiasm in both his native Trinidad and among world music fans throughout Canada. During the same year, Outcry performed at the Blue Skies Folk Festival. Other festival appearances include the Ottawa Urban Music Festival (1998) and the National Capital Tulip Festival (2001). With Outcry, Drew had the privilege of sharing the stage with many distinguished artists including Jamaican reggae giants Third World, Toronto-born soul diva Ivana Santilli, Sudanese Afro-Beat ambassadors Tarik Abubakr and the Afro-Nubians, Cabo Verdese morna singer Fantcha, Cuban rhumberos Klave y Kongo, and Brazilian samba troubadours Cascabulho.

When Outcry disbanded in August 2000, Drew returned to Trinidad to write, perform, and study with virtuoso cuatrista Robert Munro and Caribbean Indo-Jazz pioneer Mungal Patasar. In 2004, he founded the group Kobo Town in order to perform new songs rooted in the rhythmic and lyrical forms of early Trinidadian music.

ARTIST WEBSITE:  http://www.famecast.com/kobotown

OTHER ARTIST WEBSITE:  http://www.kobotown.com

HOME TOWN: 
Toronto/Port-of-Spain

GROUP/BAND MEMBERS: 
Drew Gonsalves (lead vocals, cuatro, guitar), Robert Milicevic (drums), Stich Wynston (drums), Ravi Jadoonanan (dholak, percussions), Derek Thorne (congas), Linsey Wellman (flute, saxophone, clarinet), Roger Williams (bass), Cesco Emmanuel (lead guitar), Osvaldo Rodriguez (violin, piano)

INFLUENCES: 
early Trinidadian calypso, Cuban son montuno, Jamaican mento, French Antillean zouk, old school dancehall, roots reggae, Brazilian forro, Crucian scratch band music, Venezuelan pasillos, Colombian parranda, Haitian kompa

Roaring Lion, King Radio, Eddie Grant, Jolly Boys, Manu Chao, Barbarito Torres, Steel Pulse, Yellowman, David Rudder, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Mutabaruka, The Orishas, Mighty Sparrow, K-os, Salif Keita, Boukman Eksperyans, Kassav, Anthony B, Diblo Dibala & Matchatcha, Jane Bunnett & The Spirits of Havana, Les Nubians, Ozomatli, Richard Bona, Ruben Blades, Baaba Maal, Alpha, Yaya Diallo

ON MY PLAYLIST:  N/A