BAKA BEYOND, THE JAM JAR – ‘WHEN AFRO AND CELTIC MUSIC MEET AND DO THE QUICKSTEP’

This was a treat — and an unexpected one. A message a week before the gig asked if I’d like to come along to the launch of Baka Beyond’s first album in 12 years, Sing the World Awake.

My approach is always: say yes, ask questions later. This turned out to be one of my favourite ‘yes’ moments to date.

Baka Beyond were born from an impulsive and inspired trip to Cameroon, sparked by Phil Agland’s People of the Rainforest documentary. They liked what they saw and, 34 years and 10 albums later, here we all are.

I’d been teased by the album’s chilled nature into thinking this would be a quiet one. It was not.

As I climbed the steps, sodden but excited, the tribal call from the album opener Dance the Dawn beckoned me into a bustling Jam Jar. You won’t find a more vibrant venue than this.

Meandering to the front, I immediately understood why Baka Beyond have been doing this for so long: they radiate happiness, with Su Hart as the chief ringleader. She is an ecstatic, expressive performer whose face must ache from smiling after every show. Su radiates positive energy.

Grooving beside her, Ellie Jamieson mirrors that joy. The two perform intertwined, singing harmonies I’ve never heard before. Their voices are their instruments, and their bodies never stop moving to the continuous beat provided by master percussionist Ayodel Scott.

One look at this man and you know he’s a legend. In fact, I did — and he gave me a wink and a smile while beating the life out of a bongo solo. A very talented legend.

If Baka Beyond’s live performance were a piece of art, it would be the Jam Jar stage backdrop: a rhythmic wall of patterned psychedelic colour beaming out from behind them.

As Su calls out, “Let’s dance!” before Street Dance, it feels ironic: this crowd needs no invitation to dance.

Baka Beyond are what happens when Afro and Celtic music meet in the middle and do the quickstep. The combination of driving drums and joyous violin creates an infectious, pulsating sound that makes it impossible not to move something – or everything.

The show even had a half‑time interlude. What a great idea. The highlight was Su heading around with CDs, using the point‑smile‑sell technique, which surely worked well.

The second half eased in gently with Spirit of the Forest which, as band co‑founder Martin Craddick explains, is essential to their sound.

The band believe their music brings the spirits out of the forest to dance and, as he puts it, “music and dancing is all we need really.”

The crowd are locked into the deep Baka groove, time is flying, and both band and audience are spinning, leaping around the stage in joyous harmony.

Every song was a highlight, but it had to end somewhere. Baka was the perfect closer, with bass player Kibisingo Douglas taking the plaudits as he had throughout, bringing the funky undercurrent right to the surface — and who doesn’t love a beefed‑up funky bass line?

The crowd were wild, one man seeminly having a full‑on out‑of‑body experience; nobody was more in the moment than him.

This was the kind of gig you’re still excited about the day after – and already wishing would happen again soon.