Extra Golden U.S. Tour
By Team JamBase May 12, 2008 • 1:52 pm PDT
“A true collaboration between Kenyan musicians and their American counterparts, Extra Golden dives headfirst into the benga tradition while subtly updating it. Extra Golden is doing more than making gorgeous music; they’re pouring the foundation for one more cross-cultural bridge, a gesture of paramount importance.” -Global Rhythm
Extra Golden is a band that started as an inter-continental collaboration between Kenyan and American musicians. The music they’ve developed over two albums is of a style all their own, an innovative combination of east African benga guitar pop and American rock. This will be the band’s second U.S. tour, and their first time visiting much of the country, including the South and West Coast. Their latest album Hera Ma Nono was released last fall to outstanding critical praise.
Extra Golden Tour Dates:
06/09/08 Mon The Milestone Charlotte, NC
06/10/08 Tue Grey Eagle Asheville, NC
06/11/08 Wed Caledonia Lounge Athens, GA
06/12/08 Thu Bonnaroo Music Festival Manchester, TN
06/14/08 Sat Orange Show Houston, TX
06/15/08 Sun Club de Ville Austin, TX
06/17/08 Tue Bar Pink Elephant San Diego, CA
06/18/08 Wed Echo Los Angeles, CA
06/19/08 Thu Muddy Waters Santa Barbara, CA
06/20/08 Fri Cellar Door Visalia, CA
06/21/08 Sat Sierra Nevada World Music Festival Boonville, CA
06/22/08 Sun Rickshaw Stop San Francisco, CA
06/24/08 Tue Nectar Seattle, WA
06/25/08 Wed Holocene Portland, OR
06/26/08 Thu Sled Island Music Festival Calgary, AB
07/17/08 Thu Millennium Park Chicago, IL
07/18/08 Fri Der Rathskeller Madison, WI
07/19/08 Sat Union Park Chicago, IL
07/20/08 Sun Union Park Chicago, IL
07/21/08 Mon Grog Shop Cleveland Heights, OH (w/ !!!, Icy Demons)
07/22/08 Tue Rex Theater Pittsburgh, PA (w/ !!!, Icy Demons)
07/23/08 Wed 10,000 Lakes Festival Detroit Lakes, MN
07/26/08 Sat Forecastle Festival Louisville, KY
07/28/08 Mon Birchmere Alexandria, VA
07/30/08 Wed Museum of Fine Arts Boston, MA (w/ Daby Touré)
07/31/08 Thu Iron Horse Music Hall Northampton, MA
08/03/08 Sun Prospect Park Bandshell Brooklyn, NY (w/ Habib Koite’ and Bamada)
08/20/08 Wed Lincoln Center New York, NY The musicians for this tour are the same who performed on the latest album Hera Ma Nono:
Opiyo Bilongo: Lead guitar, vocals. Member of Bana Mayaka from Nairobi’s Kariobangi area.
Onyango Wuod Omari: Drums, vocals. Member of Bana Mayaka.
Kimpaul Jagwasi: Vocals. This is the younger brother of late EG co-founder Otieno Jagwasi, and he sings with the touring benga band Dola Kabarry and Orchestra Super Haki Haki.
Alex Minoff: Guitar, vocals. Former member of Golden and guitarist for Weird War.
Ian Eagleson: Guitar, vocals. Co-founder of Extra Golden with the late Otieno Jagwasi, and former member of Golden.
The band will have five singers, all trading off on lead vocals duty from song to song, and three guitarists trading off on rhythm and lead roles, some times doing all at once. They will be performing songs off both albums, some new compositions, as well as some benga songs composed by the Kenyan bandmates.
Among those new benga cuts may be another song for America’s favorite Luo-decendent, Barack Obama. Extra Golden previously recorded “Obama” on their latest album, a praise song for the senator after he helped the band clear visa hurdles for their last tour. Check it out through our imeem link above, or right here: thrilljockey.com/drop/freebies/Extra_Golden-Obama.mp3.
Things have never been easy for Extra Golden, through the death of original singer and co-founder Otieno Jagwasi in 2004, the visa difficulties on the last tour that were solved only with the help of Illinois Senator Barack Obama, and more recently the political and ethnic crisis in Kenya after the recent presidential elections.
Check out JamBase’s exclusive feature on Extra Golden here…
