BCUC – Millions of Us LP On the Corner Records (UK)

LP version. A stone’s throw from the church where Desmond Tutu organized the escape of the most wanted anti-Apartheid activists of Soweto, BCUC rehearses in a shipping container-turned-community restaurant, where their indomitable outspokenness echoes in a whole new way. Like its elders, Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness sees its music as a hedonistic trance, but also as a weapon of political and spiritual liberation. Bantu means people, Uhuru means freedom — the seven-piece band led by vocalist Jovi Nkosi rekindle the freedom of awareness, giving contemporary voice to the ancestral traditions of indigenous peoples. Jazz sounds of 1970s and ’80s productions replaced by hip-hop influences and punk-rock energy, taking the listener on an intriguing epic journey. With only a few releases under their belt, BCUC took the world by storm with their mesmerizing performances, winning crowds at festivals such as Glastonbury (West Holts), Roskilde, Dour, Worldwide, Womad, Fusion, and Sziget to name a few, while collaborating with legends like Femi Kuti and Saul Williams. Millions Of Us is their first full-length album and most ambitious work to date — distilling their magic on record, summoning mainstage festival-energy and stewing down, casting spells for the intimate audience. Recorded in Soweto, post dubbed and mixed in London the album is the coming together of this unique band and London’s On The Corner Records, a label that has been traversing underground sounds worldwide.