Bristol's World Music Gigs

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Bristol's World Scene

Do we need the term World music in 2020?

World music has always been a problematic term, somewhere like Bristol is a key example of why. With 16% of the population being from ethnic minority groups and dedicated centres studying the impact of migration on citizenship, there seems little distinction between ‘local music’ and ‘world music’ anymore. Reggae is often classed as ‘world music’ given its Jamaican roots, but it has a strong UK heritage and for someone who is a 2nd or 3rd generation UK citizen with migrant parents, making music that’s classed as ‘world’ when they’ve never lived anywhere else but say, Bristol, seems an offensive categorisation. Its almost a cliche to say we live in a global society, so isn’t all music now world music?

Everyone knows that Bristol is a true melting pot of cultures and it comes as no surprise that the city has a healthy world music scene which manages to avoid the cliche. The on-trend big names in world music like William Onyeabor, Ebo Taylor or the Kuti family usually find themselves at home in Bristol’s Colston Hall. Occasional headliners can also be found at The Fleece and the Trinity Centre. St George’s hosts regular world music events covering more traditional music from Senegal, Mozambique and South Africa, where instruments like the kora and mbira are commonplace.

Locally, Bristol is home to some very talented ‘world music’ musicians. Afrobeat stalwarts like Mankala and No Stop Go (formerly Bristol Afrobeat Project) play smaller venues like The Canteen and The Old Market Assembly but also get the opportunity to support international bands at larger Bristol venues.

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Our recent world recommendations

Nigerian-British legend Dele Sosimi is back in town to throw down monstrous slabs of deep Afrogroove! The keyboardist-turned-bandleader of Fela Kuti’s Egypt 80 commands a tight yet mercurial ensemble, weaving Afrobeat’s hypnotic rhythms with ecstatic improvisation. Big! One of the most prominent and internationally renowned voices in Afrobeat, Dele Sosimi’s career began in the late ’70s when he played keyboard for the genre’s pioneer, Fela Kuti as part of Egypt 80. Later he co-founded co-founded and led Femi Kuti's Positive Force. A Brew regular and always a big vibe!

Bristol’s iconic outer-reaches not-dub outpost buries itself with a 10-tonne heavy assemblage of global associates. Inside: the UK debut of astral sampling raggamuffins SKRS and Brazil’s tropicalia psych-dub lion Felinto; plus insane live collabs between Jay Glass Dubs and EP/64’s Dali + Grove and Ossia. Life-changing FFO: Iration Steppas, The Bug, Bauhaus, On U Sound, Equiknoxx, Wackies, Holy Tongue. From 2015 - 2025 there was a place called Bokeh Versions. Join us for this birthday funeral hybrid memorial acknowledging A DECADE of unorthodox practices and life-giving sounds in the dub / not-dub / not-dancehall / psychodubilly / dambient / gothdread / shoejazz / loverschlock, industrosmische / evangelical illbient continuum.

Sell out warning! Distilling the live afrofunk jazz sermons of Fela Kuti with the JA / UK fusion of the Two Tone movement, Soothsayers have been making our hair stand on end for 25 years now. They’re finally taking their rightful place on the Jam Jar stage with killer brass chops and upful steppin’ anthems FFO: Steel Pulse, Hugh Masekela, Prince Fatty, Dele Sosimi, The Hempolics. Afrobeat, soul-jazz and deep dub - Soothsayers make vibrant, socially conscious music with a groove-driven sound that resonates across cultures and generations.

Echoing the energy of Floating Points, Ezra Collective and Sons of Kemet, London’s Zeñel blends Afrobeats, jungle and grime with a heavy dose of live jazz flair. Their electronic improvisations twist jazz into a percussive, club-tuned frenzy engineered for intimate live gigs and Friday night freakouts alike. London’s Zeñel fuse jazz impro with electronic sounds, from grime to afrobeats

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What our editors say

“Andy Irvine is one of the great Irish singers, his voice one of a handful of truly great ones that gets to the very soul of Ireland. He has been hailed as "a tradition in himself." Musician, singer and songwriter, Andy has maintained his highly individual performing skills throughout his over 50-year career. From Sweeney's Men in the mid 60s, to the enormous success of Planxty in the 70s, his duo with Paul Brady in the later 70s and then from Patrick Street to Mozaik, LAPD and Usher’s Island, Andy has been a world music pioneer and an icon for traditional music and musicians.”
From: Andy Irvine

“Stemming from jazz, folk, world music and theatre backgrounds, My Secret Sister weave together global threads of song in an exciting and varied repertoire. They aim to tell stories through song, and above all, to have fun in every moment!”
From: My Secret Sister

“Since their formation, the band has performed at prestigious venues, and festivals worldwide, sharing stage with some of Africa’s greatest musicians. Their high-energy shows have made them a favorite in the world music scene, drawing crowds in Europe, Asia and beyond. Kasai Masai remains at the forefront of the soukous movement, proving that the heartbeat of Congolese music will never fade.”
From: Kasai Masai

“Formed in Bristol in 2009, surfing the early wave of the resurgence of interest in Colombian music styles. Baila La Cumbia have performed at many of our country’s great festivals & have filled the dancefloors at many special occasions. In fact, any cumbia band would be expected to bring the party to anywhere it’s needed. Porro (Colombian big band cumbia) and salsa tunes are woven into the repertoire and with Colombian vocalist Juan Carlos Arenas and his guitar some Chicha Vibes are suggested as well.”
From: Baila La Cumbia

“To many, especially in South America and Mexico, it came to be seen as the missing link between rock and tropical Latin music and was a key ingredient in the cumbia revival that has swept the Americas in the past decade.”
From: Los Wembler’s de Iquitos