Sacred Lodge: Ambam review | Safi Bugel's experimental album of the month

(Avon Terror Corps)Matthieu Ruben N’Dongo amps up the intensity on a second album that makes an uncanny atmosphere out of swarming electronics, grisly vocals and polyrhythmic percussionSacred Lodge is the side project of Paris-based producer and sound artist Matthieu Ruben N’Dongo. Rooted in his ethnomusicological research, which explores the role of music in ritual contexts and his own Equatoguinean heritage, the results are unsettling but compelling, characterised by heady percussion and swarming electronics. But while his 2019 debut Hijos Del Sol was made up of murky downtempo instrumentals, N’Dongo’s follow-up amps up the intensity almost beyond recognition, with a collection of sludgy, abrasive tracks.One of the starkest differences is the use of vocals, which have previously only featured as echoey background textures. On Ambam, N’Dongo makes full use of his voice. Inspired by the tradition of field hollers and ritual chants (specifically of the Fang people, from which his father originates), he ranges from guttural metal-style growls to distorted screams and yelps; some lyrics are delivered in a panting, rap-like cadence. On opening track Wa Wa Ke Wa Wa Yi, N’Dongo’s grisly tone is offset by composer and vocalist Sara Persico, whose smoky, seductive drawl only reinforces the uncanny atmosphere. Continue reading...

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