Fela Kuti: Fear No Man 13: African Counterpoint
Jan 30, 2026
Brian Eno, composer and ambient pioneer who discovered Fela's records in London. David Byrne, musician and former Talking Heads frontman shaped by Fela's grooves. They discuss African counterpoint, layered rhythmic interlock, long-duration immersive grooves, how Fela reshaped arrangement and space, and the idea of musical community built by leaving space for others.
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Layered African Counterpoint
- Fela's music uses layered, interlocking parts to create complex grooves rather than chasing melodies over time.
- Michael Veal calls this practice "African counterpoint," a vertical stacking of rhythmic and melodic layers that converse simultaneously.
Music Encodes Social Order
- Fela's music encodes the social order of crowded Lagos markets into sound, mirroring many simultaneous voices and activities.
- Jad argues that that musical encoding gives listeners a way to hear social structures beneath conscious awareness.
Mushin Market's Sensory Overload
- In Mushin Market, Jad describes overwhelming sensory density: competing loudspeakers, vendors, and smells compressed into one space.
- He links that civic cacophony to why Lagos listeners gravitated to Fela's large, multi-voiced bands.