By www.pri.org/ The original text appears here
The multigenerational band Lakou Mizik’s new album, “Leave the Bones,” is an homage to the group’s native Haiti.
The album, a collaboration with Grammy-winning electronic music artist Joseph Ray, includes singles like “Ogou (Pran Ka Mwen),” “Lamizè Pa Dous” and “Bade Zile,” or “Under the Island,” which aim to reframe — or rather, smash — negative, stereotypical views of Haiti and its culture.
“I think that you cannot describe a country by only what you see on the news,” band member Steeve Valcourt said. “So, what we [are] hoping to do, personally, in ‘Lakou Mizik’ is to show the other side of Haiti, which is the culture, the love, the oneness, you know, that’s the point of it, the beauty of Haiti.”
The band mines the traditional music canon of Haiti and injects it with rhythms from reggae, hip-hop and electronic music.
Ray helped the band find a new sound, Valcourt said.Continue reading