Kobo Town
April 9, 2022 at 7:30 pm
As per government regulations all patrons, volunteers, artists, and staff will be required to wear an approved mask and provide either proof of COVID 19 vaccination or a negative COVID test. More information is available here.
Doors open 7:30 pm.
Music starts 8:30 pm.
Tickets: $35 at Pharmasave or online at eventbrite.com
This concert is generously sponsored by
W.W. Smith
Blenders Is Pleased To Present Kobo Town In Their Upcoming Season
Founded and fronted by émigré Trinidadian songwriter Drew Gonsalves, Kobo Town’s music has been variously described as “an intoxicating blend of lilting calypsonian wit, dancehall reggae, and trombone-heavy brass” (Guardian) and a “unique, transnational composite of rhythm, poetry, and activist journalism.”(Exclaim!) From their home in Toronto, the JUNO-nominated group has brought their distinct calypso-inspired sound to audiences across the world, from Port-of-Spain to Paris and from Montreal to Malaysia.
At once brooding and joyous, intensely poetic and highly danceable, Gonsalves’ songs betray deep roots in Caribbean folk music, while the band delivers them with an indomitable energy that has earned them a considerable following far beyond the niche of world music enthusiasts and calypso fans.
On his last release, Where the Galleon Sank (2017), Gonsalves continues to explore 500 years of history through his post-colonial, Trinidadian lens, armed with his trademark wit and gift for melody. As on Kobo Town’s two previous outings, “Galleon” is filled with buoyant music that stimulates both body and mind; propulsive, infectious grooves are juxtaposed with incisive lyrics that expose human folly and our tendency to repeat our mistakes. Part poet, part correspondent, Gonsalves delivers compelling dispatches from events both real and imaginary.
Kobo Town is named after the historic neighborhood in Port-of-Spain where calypso was born amid the boastful, humorous and militant chants of roaming stick-fighters. Situated near the fishermen’s wharf, the area was a site of constant defiance and conflict, a place where sticks and stones, songs and verses clashed with the bayonets and batons of colonial rule.
Gonsalves grew up in a middle class neighborhood in Diego Martin, a town just outside of Trinidad’s biggest city, Port of Spain.
“Diego Martin is a valley in the northern range, which is very green with a little contaminated river running through it, and that was the playground of our youth,” Gonsalves recalls. His mother is originally from Quebec City, Canada and had met Drew’s father in Barbados on a trip when he was visiting family. A few days later, they were engaged and she came to Trinidad where Gonsalves was born
Gonsalves eventually moved to Ottawa, Canada with his Mother and siblings, but on a return trip to Trinidad at age 18, his father took him to Lord Kitchener’s Calypso Revue tent. He was blown away by the cleverness and the wit of the calypsonians and also their engaging interplay with the audience. Never experienced anything like it before, from that point on calypso was always on his mind.
While Gonsalves’ writing has earned praise with critics, some traditionalists carp about the new elements Gonsalves included in his music. “I’m not sure I should call it calypso,” he says. “It is calypso inspired and derived, but it’s a conscious departure from the way it developed back home. Calypso is the folk music of urban Trinidad, but it has always drawn on outside influences, from big band and jazz in the 30s and 40s, to funk and disco in the 70s and 80s. It’s hard to pin down pure calypso. For me, the calypsonian is a singing newspaperman commenting on the events of the day, with an attitude halfway between court jester and griot.”
Catch Kobo Town April 9th 2022 at Blenders! Tickets are $35 and are available at Swift Current Pharmasave or online at eventbrite.com. Doors at the Lyric Theatre will open at 7:30pm and the music begins at 8:30pm. Blenders thanks W.W. Smith for sponsoring this show.