Balkan Beat Box, Dingwalls

Brooklyn trio are happy to shake their multicultural booties

by Howard MaleThursday, 15 April 2010

Balkan Beat Box take global fusion to new levels

“I can’t fucking hear yer!” are not the welcoming words one expects to hear from a world music favourite, it has to be said. But the audience at Dingwalls don’t look like the usual world music crowd either. This Brooklyn trio have clearly crossed over into the more lucrative club global category, and their hyperactive light show is further evidence of this. But good luck to them, because they are certainly the best of the bunch at doing this whole funky, jazzy, ragga, reggae thing, as well as being far more interesting than the more pantomime-like Gogol Bordello (of which Tamir Muskat used to be a member). My only concern was that it was just going to be the three prime movers of the band on stage glued to their laptops, which never makes for an edifying live spectacle.

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Permalink Submitted by Ghastly McNasty (not verified) on Fri, 16/04/2010 - 11:29

Reviewer needs to switch to Decaf. Travelled from Manchester see the gig and although I thought the band (and support) were great, I was left a little Jaded by the venue; A multiple tiered floor left me with little enthusiasm to dance lest my frame forced one of the many scrawny Charlie lovers from their preferred balcony position. Bless 'em. Still, awesome night, just needed to be in a place with a little more soul than Camden.

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Permalink Submitted by Bojan Timotijević (not verified) on Fri, 16/04/2010 - 12:07

Cross genre fusion is very hard. The supporting band was an example of this... they played a mish mash of sounds which I found uninspiring and in the end, completely ruined by the cover track sang by the 'beautiful singer' (note: this is purely my personal opinion, so I'm not arguing with any disagreements!). BBB however are in a league of their own. I've seen them before and was blown away, so this time I ensured to get a spot right in front of the stage. Live, they are simply infectious, and I'm positive that even BBB virgins would be lifted by their energy, and forced into involuntary moves and grooves. More importantly, they manage to blend traditional sounds with contemporary grooves beautifully. Overall, the show was spot on, great energy, really good crowd, great little venue and great value for money. 10 out 10. I agree with the comments about the strobe lights though...!

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Permalink Submitted by scott (not verified) on Sun, 18/04/2010 - 06:54

BBB is one of the super fresh bands around, there is nothing like it.. amazing !! amazing !!!

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Permalink Submitted by Alexander (not verified) on Tue, 20/04/2010 - 10:54

Ghastly McNasty has it spot on. The venue was small and crowded, and the crowd was full of kids pushing to be at the front rather than dancing! Even though BBB were great, I much prefered the gig I saw in Islington a few years ago! Although that may be due to having to leave early to get the last bus home...

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Permalink Submitted by maya (not verified) on Tue, 20/04/2010 - 13:54

BBB really tick all boxes for me. from substance to delivery - totaly enjoyable! I hope next time I can experiance them in a huge field with quality sound (what was that about..?!) and uplifting lightining as, they and their croud, deserive. such talented and commited musicians deserve good team behind them that will allow more people to enjoy their art (we didnt manage to get as many tickets as we wanted) hope they are working on it... and yes, leading man can do with less virbal working of the croud, the music realy does the job..

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