We had the great pleasure of witnessing Suntou Susso and his band of accomplished musicians in Nottingham, 9th June 2022. Suntou’s vocals are stunning, reaching a wide range of notes matched only by his 22 string Kora instrument.
Keep reading for our review, plus photos of this 5* event.
His own brand of Afrofunk and soul, inspired by a full childhood learning the Gambian Griot tradition, blew the roof off the venue, starting soft and melodic, and ending with a conga line throughout the hall.
The songs written and arranged by Suntou came to life with the improvisation intrinsic to his band’s performance. Guitar, bass, keys, drums and saxophone all took centre-stage at times to enthral the audience, some of whom came to say it was the best live music experience of their lives.
All photos by Tom Morley, except for 2nd which is by Hugh Miller
At first, our involvement was simply to promote the show to our audience, but fortunately we had the ability to book emerging support acts and decorate the amazing Metronome venue with our signature #AcoustickleMagic. Many thanks go to Tracy Luv, TATENDA and DJ Kiki D, who each garnered respect for their work despite being ‘up and coming’, and not nearly as seasoned as the band and Suntou.
Tracy Luv’s illustrious gospel-soul vocals backed with Confetti uni bandmates brought a Afrobeat flavour that was really special. TATENDA’s self-produced Afrobeat and hip hop with his own sing-rapping showed his many talents, and DJ Kiki D absolutely kept the party alive from start to finish with an outstanding record collection.
Towards the end of his set, Suntou surprised the audience by inviting on stage two of his siblings: Binta Susso, and Seckou Keita, who are renowned performers in the world music scene. Binta’s voice was a tsunami of sound, a pouring out of notes projected beautifully in her unique tone. Seckou’s energetic jamming with Suntou’s kora and djembe showcased exactly why his family is world famous for both instruments.
By the end of the show, the audience had left their seats, dancing in ecstatic expression, with some even jumping on stage to show off their freestyle moves.
If you were there, you felt the vibrations of the room in every inch of your being. If you were not, you’ll simply have to come next time.
Thank you to Metronome Nottingham for hosting this show in their A-grade venue, and for letting Acoustickle be a part of something so special.
