July 14-20, 2005

musicpicks

Femi Kuti

AFRICAN/JAZZ

If your dad was Afrobeat god Fela Anikulapop Kuti, what would you do? (And what time were you allowed out until?) Would you merely try to finish what Pop started: the socio-political rhetoric, the high life guitars, the polyrhythmic propulsion, the heated brass? Would you go another route? You'll find one answer on Femi Kuti's new Live at The Shrine DVD. Though this scion has spent most of his career, which he started in dad's band, making repetitive Afro-rhythmic songs with hip-hop beats, turntable swipes and rap babble — he recorded in Philly with ?uestlove — Shrine proves that the fruit hasn't fallen so far from the tree. Sure, Femi shows the difference between dad and son by pricking Pop's polyrhythmic enterprise with his own buoyant jazz squeak (kid's a hell of a saxophonist). But staying closer to his roots is Shrine's mission. Flammable funk and snorting horny R&B are but the fuel for Femi's take on traditional African music recorded in the Kutis' hometown of Lagos, where Sundays mean Femi day, every week. And just like Fela, Femi's all about ripping the corrupt Nigerian government a new asshole. Dad would be proud.

Fri., July 15, 9 p.m., $25, Theater of the Living Arts, 334 South St., 215-922-1011, www.thetla.com.

—A.D. Amorosi