Bantou Mentale

Bantou Mentale

Bantou Mentale is a Paris-based group whose sound draws on Kinshasa and Paris, combining ecstatic vocals, broken beats, deep bass and heavily distorted electronics. The group’s debut is the five-track digital EP No Romance.

Members and background

The line-up includes Cubain Kabeya, drummer, songwriter and concept lead, who comes originally from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and lives in Paris. He has worked in or around several major Kinshasa acts, including Staff Benda Bilili, Konono No.1, Jupiter and Okwess, and Mbongwana Star. Guitarist Chicco Katembo is also associated with the early Staff Benda Bilili story. Singer Apocalypse is active on the Paris Congolese scene and has been part of the orchestra of Koffi Olomide. Liam Farrell, also known as Doctor L, is an Irish-born, Paris-raised musician, composer and producer.

Sound and style

The group presents itself as an African band built around the force of rock and electronic music. Its sound is described through imagery of dub, fuzz, heavy bass and a hard, intense spirit, with a strong emphasis on trance-like energy and physical impact. The music is presented as a Kinshasa-meets-Paris blend rather than a straightforward revival of any single scene.

Associated work and collaborations

Doctor L brings experience from work with Tony Allen, Mbongwana Star and Les Amazones d’Afrique, as well as Assassin. Cubain Kabeya and Chicco Katembo also worked with Damon Albarn when he recorded Kinshasa One Two in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2010. The group’s members therefore connect several strands of Congolese popular music, Paris-based performance, and international collaboration.

Formation and identity

Bantou Mentale is presented as a band rather than a one-off project, formed from musicians with experience across different Congolese and Franco-Congolese acts. Its line-up is four-piece, and its identity is built around the meeting of African performance traditions with amplified, electronic and rock textures.