Konono Nº1, “Mana Na Bana” (2010)
find it on Assume Crash Position

It’s hard to decide what kind of tunes should soundtrack whiling away the days of the heatwave. Do you want something as slow and lazy as the feeling of being overheated, or do you want that overwhelms the heat with heat of its own?

“Mama Na Bana” is definitely the latter. It starts with a nice African jump feel, shared vocals, and the ubiquitous thumb pianos of Konono Nº1, but just before the three minute mark it explodes with heavier drums and the sound of musicians losing themselves in a moment. Like how people in tropical parts of the world eat spicy food, it’s a perfect pairing of hot with hot.