Alphonse Daudet Touna: Balafon, Percussion, Vox Jeff Spencer: Bass, Vox Neil Smith: Guitar Matthew Jones: Drums James Y2K: Alto Sax Lisa Cherian: Percussion
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Helele performing at the Cube:
Influences
Very cool kid - he can join our band when he turns three!
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Sounds Like
Here's what the nice people at Bristol's Venue magazine had to say about our performance at Ashton Court:
"Most impressive of all, was Alphonse Daudet's Hélélé Afro-Jazz Band, with Alphonse's rippling Balafon (xylophone) feeding off a throb of tight percussion to launch James Gardiner-Bateman's alto sax. It was great dance music, great jazz and great fun all at the same time."
And in their round-up of 2007's best music:
"One local band straddling the jazz/world divide made a real impact this year. Hélélé's tight, jazzed-up Afrobeat won fans by packing dancefloors and fields from Cheltenham to Glastonbury via Ashton Court. Next year should see them get massive."
Since arriving in Britain from Cameroon in 2001 Alphonse Daudet Touna has worked solidly on building a creative outlet for his musical inspiration and Hélélé is the result. He has played around the world on a journey that has taken him from Cameroon, through France and Italy, to the UK. Now a resident of Bristol, he has formed the band with some of the city's finest session and jazz musicians.
He plays a balafon (an African marimba) he made himself. The rich balafon melody creates another style of afro jazz through a mix of forest rhythms such as Assiko, Bikoutsi, Makouné, Makossa and Bolobo.
The concerts they play are spontaneous and alive. Full of vibration and energy, the band elevate the crowd through the body language of dance. And for the mind, great solos are weaved within the framework of rare grooves and percussion.
His songs bring messages of peace, non-violence and anti-racism. Stories of migration and asylum. Themes of safety and security in the many places people find themselves living.
In Hélélé, Alphonse is currently joined by Jeff Spencer on bass, Matthew Jones on Drums, Neil Smith on Guitar, James Gardiner-Bateman on Alto Sax and Lisa Cherian on Percussion. Individually they are all great musicians in their own right and are involved in a number of other exciting projects.
Credits include Geoffrey Oryema, Monko Maroc, Papa Wemba, Mario Canonge, Guy Sangé, Tom Yoms, Gilad Atzmon.
Very impressive gig at the Polish Club last night! You just keep getting better and better.The percussion/drum breakdowns were especially hot! Hope you make it in 2008!
Raising funds for: WOMEN FOR LIFE - a grassroots women's organisation in the West Bank working to empower women in order to become self-sufficient and to resist the occupation.
ASWAT - Palestinian Gay Women's Group http://www.aswatgroup.org/english/
LEGAL FEES - International street medics recently returned from solidarity work in the West Bank and Israel were deported for taking action against the occupation and have outstanding costs from resisting the legal/illegal actions of the Israeli government
hey guys, this is fred from the bristol uni jazzfunksoul society. it was great having you play the epi at the end of last year, and we're kicking things off for this year with a jam night at mr wolf's on september 25. feel free to come down!
Saw you at Ashton Court..dunno if youd recognise me, but i was right at the front dancing away! you played such a good set...everyone really let go! please let me know about some upcoming gigs! ill be there!! Annie xxx
Amazing show at Ashton Court. I have seen you 4 times now I think but what you did on Saturday just blew my mind! The energy you create is just massive. Much respect! zac
