NEWS: Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness (BCUC) @ Cobalt

Isn’t it always the way? You get into a new band and then discover they played at a venue a vigorous stone’s throw from you a few weeks before. So it is with Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness, who played Cobalt four years ago, before The Awfulness slowed down their world-beating ascendancy and before their take on old gospel standard Nobody Knows became my track of the year.

But the good people of Cobalt have done us all a solid by getting them back as part of a short UK tour in October. And you really need to be there on Sunday 23^rd October, because BCUC are one of the most thrilling, funky, in-your-face acts of recent years, regardless of genre. Described as “emo-indigenous Afro psychedelic fire from the hood” by vocalist Kgomotso Mokone, which seems about right, this bass/drums/voices/politics/punk energy outfit hit you in the brain, the heart and the feet with a rhythm-driven sound that’ll get your blood up. They’ve been winning over crowds all summer and the footage shows they’re getting better and better. Get yourself to Cobalt and witness the truly indestructible beat of Soweto.

Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness (BCUC) play Cobalt Studios, Newcastle on Sunday 23^rd October.