Ibibio Sound Machine

Eno Williams (voice), Alfred Bannerman (guitar), Joseph Amoako (drums), Philip Klinogo (bass), Max Grunhard (saxophone), Tony Hayden (trombone, synthesizer), Scott Baylis (trumpet, synthesizer) Ibibio Sound Machine is a London-based collective that since its formation in 2013 has been redefining the boundaries of Afro-funk and global dance music, creating a sound that is both ancestral and futuristic. The brainchild of charismatic vocalist Eno Williams and multi-instrumentalist Max Grunhard, the group boldly fuses the rhythmic heritage of African music, Nigerian highlife and Afrobeat with funk, disco, post-punk and contemporary electronica. Born in London, Eno Williams grew up in the Ibibio region of south-eastern Nigeria, a largely Christian culture where she was introduced not only to highlife music, but also to Nigerian gospel music and many varieties of African and Western pop. Many of Ibibio Sound Machine's lyrics are in the Ibibio language and tell traditional tales with an appealing mix of morality and humour. Their latest album, Pull the Rope (2024), maintains the hope, joy and sensuality that define their music, but shifts their energy into a different territory where we go from the brightness of a festival to the intense pulse of an open club until dawn, from Glastonbury stages to the best dancefloors, from house, funk and disco to post-punk and afrobeat. The album is a breath of hope and celebration in the face of adversity, an invitation to share and to imagine, through music, a better world. Ibibio Sound Machine is not just a band, it is a crossroads of cultures, a rhythmic clash of tradition and modernity that goes beyond pure partying and conveys a message of unity and resistance. This spirit of connection permeates all their concerts and always invites us to celebrate, to think and to dance.