EAST BAY EXPRESS: Fela with More Feeling
The AfroFunk Experience bombs dancefloors and
soothes Sudan.
By Eric K. Arnold
Published: Wednesday, July 27, 2005
You've probably heard of Afrobeat by now, but what's Afrofunk? The answer, provided by Victor Sila, is astounding in its simplicity: "Afrobeat with more funk." MORE>>

The sounds that most of us know as Afrobeat are born out of the crowded streets of West African cities like Lagos, Accra and Abidjan. Combining the polyrhythmic percussion of indigenous West African music with Fenders and brass, Afrobeat trundled up from the underground to denounce dictatorship, corruption and oppression while still treating dancers and music fans to a seriously good time. Sila, hailing from the East African nation of Kenya, has the same mission, but named his own brand of music Afrofunk, an updated sound that incorporates more trace elements of hip-hop and soul. Sila and his Afro Funk Experience are in the energy exchange business: you give it up, they give it back with interest---no bribes involved. Try that trick with a Nigerian policeman. Peter Koht - Metro Santa Cruz

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As a musically inclined child growing up in a village in Kenya, Victor Sila whiled away the days singing the traditional songs of his ancestors, as well humming tunes by Prince, Otis Redding and the Beatles. Now living in the United States, Sila still crosses genre lines with his band the Afrofunk Experience. He sings in English and Swahili while the band weaves its way through African and Afro-Latin rhythms, reggae skank and hip-hop swagger.

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SFSTATION.COM EDITORIAL FEATURE
By Ginevra Kirkland

Sila and the Afrofunk Experience create music that's like a rubber band ricocheting back and forth across decades and continents. African artists and rhythms influenced many American artists like James Brown and Prince, who the band then listened to and fused with African sounds. Sila leads a talented group of musicians who draw on diverse influences to form a solid, Africanized world beat groove. This group has played with everyone from Spearhead to Ballet National du Senegal. The lineup contains: on djembe, Samba Guisse, on bass SF native Wendell Rand, on horns is the inimitable Mike Pitre, Tai Kenning on drums, guitars by Ken House and David James, percussion by Elvis Nensah, and Jeremiah Kpoh on turntables.

What sets Sila apart more than his voice, his band leadership, or his take on the music is the way he uses all of it to give back to the world. The band is coming off a recent benefit whose profits went to the Save the Children Fund for children in Darfur, Sudan. Sila's blog (http://victorsila.com/afrofunk/index.php) keeps tabs on what our government is doing (or not doing) to help resolve the current crisis, and also celebrates the small victories won along the journey.

This hodgepodge of sound is sure to leave the dancefloor at Great American Music Hall sweating and smiling. In Sila's words "When it comes down to it, all that matters is the music."

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EAST BAY EXPRESS CRITIC'S CHOICE!

AFRO-FUNK
Kenyan expatriate Victor Sila is a man on a mission: to have a seriously funky good time. The founder of a style he calls Afro-funk, he has also named his band the Afro-Funk Experience, which is basically what will happen to you Friday night at Berkeley's Ashkenaz. The Experience's sets are invariably long, sweaty labors of love -- in addition to syncopated grooves, percussive breaks, and Sila's fervent multilingual vocals, there's another, more interactive element. Simply put, the more love you show Sila and company when they're onstage, the more they'll return to you. Now go tell your momma 'bout that. $11-$13, 9:30 p.m. Ashkenaz.com.
(Eric K. Arnold)

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SAN FRANCISCO BAY VIEW: Live Aid in San Francisco
Raises $5,000
BY Wanda Sabir

Sila and the AfroFunk Experience was hands down or perhaps it should be hands up a great event. When I arrived Friday night after the Davies event, I found it was sold out. Just as I was about to leave, though, Sila came down the stairs and told the door monitors to let me and my friend in. Upstairs, Henri Pierre and his band were playing. They were great, especially the woman on the fiddle and the percussionist, not that the entire band wasn’t awesome as well.
It’s just not every day that one sees a violinist with a West African band. After Pierre finished, we moved onto the previously inaccessible dance floor to hold a spot. DJs were spinning great dance tunes, so the wait for Sila and the AfroFunk Experience flew by, and before I knew it, it was 12 midnight.

They were dynamite! I danced until my knees almost gave out despite poking elbows, bodies bumping into me and misplaced feet. During the early hours, that is, before 1 a.m., it was kind of dangerous for a girl who wanted to stretch out and boogie, but I had a strong man with me, who planted himself between me and the loose-limbed dancers.

Sila, who raised $5,000 last weekend for the children of Dafur, Sudan, traversed the African continent that evening with songs from Eritrea, his own native Kenya and elsewhere. With his stellar musical lineup, his band recalled the great days of Afro-beat with its creator Fela Anikulapo-Kuti.

Video footage streamed silently on the walls of Club Femi, Fela’s son in concert at the Shrine in Lagos, as Sila’s band performed that evening. After seeing Femi Wednesday night at the Fillmore, I can say that Sila’s AfroFunk Experience rivaled that of his idol. In fact, I liked Sila better.

I remember getting slightly bored with Femi. The repetitive rhythms and the absence of a hard discernable beat made it easy to loose interest. The women shaking their booties in my face got boring too after a while and I left the crowded floor and went upstairs where I ran into the Senegalese band, Daara J, having dinner.

Though Daara J was grand, it would have been nice to hear them with a live band, although the deejay was okay. The three men were in the air a lot – jumping up, leaping across the stage and speaking English as if they grew up in Kingston!

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DAILY CANDY: FEATURED WEEKEND EVENT
AfroFunk Music Festival
What: African musicians groove to benefit the Save the Children fund for kids in Darfur, Sudan.
Why: Sure beats teeny-bop pop.
When: Fri. & Sat., 9 p.m.
Where: Elbo Room, 647 Valencia St., b/t 17th & 18th Sts. (415-552-7788). Tickets at ticketweb.com.

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SAN FRANCISCO BAY GUARDIAN: FUNK FOR LIFE:

Amnesty International estimates 70,000 men, women, and children have lost their lives due to the violence that erupted in Darfur, Sudan, in 2003, between the Sudanese government and groups fighting for their independence. The conflict has resulted in disease, malnutrition, and loss of shelter, contributing factors to hundreds of thousands of other deaths. Perhaps the most devastating issue is the thousands of children left homeless, hopeless, and without means to take care of themselves. Take a night to make a difference. Join Sila and the Afrofunk Experience, Henri Pierre Koubaka, Afro Beat Down, and others for the First Annual AfroFunk Festival – a benefit for the Save the Children Fund featuring "two electrifying nights of gritty, ripping, hard-hitting Afrobeat and AfroFunk music straight outta Africa." Through Sat/30, 9 p.m., Elbo Room, 647 Valencia, SF. $12. www.afrofunk.org. (Jana Rogers)

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SFWEEKLY: Funk Rock
They got the beat

We've heard it explained as an echoey, international bounce-back effect: Traditional African music influenced artists here, from James Brown to Sly & the Family Stone. Fully formed funk then traveled back the way it came and had its effect on musicmakers in Senegal, Kenya, Nigeria, and elsewhere. At the Afrofunk Festival, see how it all turned out with headliner Sila & the AfroFunk Experience, Fela Kuti tribute band AfroBeat Down, and Henri-Pierre Koubaka leading a big, wild bunch called Kasumai Bare. The Afrofunk Sisters show off some moves and DJ Jeremiah warms it up at 9 p.m. at the Elbo Room, 647 Valencia (at 18th Street), S.F. Admission is $10-12; call 552-7788 or visit www.elbo.com.
-- Hiya Swanhuyser

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NITEVIBE: Energetic!

The Afrofunk Music Festival not only boasts the electrifying sounds of modern Africa, it also benefits the children of Darfur, Sudan, via the Save The Children’s Emergency Relief Fund. Both Friday and Saturday nights you'll find the Elbo Room ablaze with rhythm including Sila and the Afrofunk Experience, Afro Beat Down and many more artists originating from Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal and beyond. Even if you have never experienced this music before, I guarantee you will be running to the dancefloor as the first notes of this upbeat, energetic show gets underway. (JP)

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SAN FRANCISCO BAY GUARDIAN:
When he arrived in America from his native Kenya, Victor Sila had one goal in mind: to weave the music he grew up with – African high life, Soukous, and Afro-beat, plus American pop, soul, and funk –
into a unique, personal expression that would bring people together. Twelve years later he's finally perfected that sound in a blend he
calls Afro-funk.

His latest project, simply called Sila, has exploded onto the Bay Area world music scene with an irresistible blend of traditional African and Afro-Latin rhythms, slinky guitar, and Sila's syrupy Swahili and English vocals. The five-piece also throws some crucial reggae skank and hip-hop swagger into the mix, resulting in an upbeat, multiculti celebration that's guaranteed to keep you glued to the dance floor.

NITEVIBE BUZZ 177:
What do you get when you combine traditional African rhythms with the sexiness of Prince, soul of Otis Redding and a little James Brown funk? Come find out as Sila and the Afro-funk Experience spread the ultimate international vibe... With Kenyan roots and a progressive love of American music, this will be a serious session on the dancefloor and a unique education for your ears.
- (JP) NITEVIBE BUZZ

NITEVIBE BUZZ 118:
Prepare yourself for music that'll titillate the aural senses and move your body to another continent.

EAST BAY EXPRESS: Critic's Choice for the week
How about some highlife, soukous, Afrobeat, Latin, funk, and
reggae, all in one? Sounds good, right? Well, that's what you
can expect from Sila and the Afro-Funk Experience, a band
fronted by Kenyan musician and bandleader Victor Sila. With
vocals sung in both Swahili and English, not to mention
bottomless grooves perfect for boogying on down to, Sila's
fusion-friendly sound is both futuristic and traditional.
- Eric K. Arnold, East Bay Express