摘要：The success of the Congotronics series of recordings has been described by journalists as both a “global sensation” and “a small phenomenon in Afropop marketing.” According to their label's promotions, the music of “tradi-modern” Congotronics bands like Konono No 1 “draw on traditional trance music to which they've incorporated the heavily distorted sounds generated by DIY amplification . . . making their music a sonic cousin of some extreme forms of experimental rock and electronic dance music.” This paper is a brief meditation on some of the representations of Konono No 1 in the media, including promotional materials, press articles, reviews, and blogs. A critical analysis suggests that various representations of Konono’s music amplify and distort problematic issues of musical technology, exoticism, tradition, and authenticity. Why are detailed descriptions of Congotronics bands’ electrified instruments repeated in nearly every journalistic account, which—conversely—almost never include descriptions of their previous, acoustic musical traditions? What role does technology play in the enthusiastic reception of Congotronics in Europe and North America? And what is “Bazombo trance music”?
