Sotho Sounds are a band from Malealea, a village in south-west

Lesotho Lesotho, formally the Kingdom of Lesotho and formerly known as Basutoland, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Entirely surrounded by South Africa, it is the largest of only three sovereign enclave and exclave, enclaves in the world, t ...

. The members of Sotho Sounds are shepherds and built their instruments themselves.

History

Sotho Sounds recorded their debut album ''Sotho Sounds Malealea'', produced by Risenga Makondo, in 2003. The band sold the album on CDs at concerts. In July 2003 Sotho Sounds performed at

WOMAD WOMAD ( ; World of Music, Arts and Dance) is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance. History WOMAD was founded in 1980 by English rock musician Peter Gabriel, w ...

festival in the UK. In 2012 Sotho Sounds' album ''Junk Funk'' was released on

Riverboat Records World Music Network is a UK-based record label specializing in world music. The World Music Network website features news, reviews, live music listings, and guide sections on world music. It also features an online "Battle of the Bands" competi ...

. Robin Denselow of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' wrote of the album that " otho Sounds'approach may be rough and ready but their energy and enthusiasm are contagious." In a review of the album, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' compared Sotho Sounds favourably to

Konono Nº1 Konono Nº1 is a musical group from Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. They are known for their DIY aesthetic, combining electric likembé (a traditional instrument similar to the mbira) with vocals, dancers, and percussion instruments ...

and

Staff Benda Bilili Staff Benda Bilili are a group of street musicians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They used to live around the grounds of the zoo in the country's capital city, Kinshasa, and play music which is rooted in soukous, with elements of old-s ...

, who also play self-made instruments. That same year Sotho Sounds told

Deutschlandfunk Deutschlandfunk (DLF, ''Broadcast Germany'') is a public-broadcasting radio station in Germany, concentrating on news and current affairs. It is one of the four national radio channels produced by Deutschlandradio. History Broadcasting in t ...

that most

Basotho The Sotho (), also known as the Basotho (), are a Sotho-Tswana ethnic group indigenous to Southern Africa. They primarily inhabit the regions of Lesotho, South Africa, Botswana and Namibia. The ancestors of the Sotho people are believed to h ...

were more interested in western music than the traditional music that they play.

Discography

Albums

*''Sotho Sounds Malealea'' (2003) *''Junk Funk'' (2012,

)

References

{{reflist , refs = {{citation , url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3156542.stm , title=Lesotho shepherds turn junk into funk , work=

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

, date=2003-11-04 , access-date=2024-10-18 {{citation , url=https://www.popmatters.com/162302-sotho-sounds-junk-funk-2495822986.html , title=Sotho Sounds: Junk Funk , work=

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

, author=Deanne Sole , date=2012-09-24 , access-date=2024-10-18 "Immer mehr Basotho bevorzugen westliche Musik. Es gibt zwar auch noch Menschen, die lieber traditionelle Basotho Musik hören, die die Instrumente mögen und unsere traditionellen Tänze. Aber die meisten Menschen, kennen das Alles gar nicht mehr." {{citation , url=https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/band-aus-lesotho-begeistert-mit-instrumenten-aus-abfall-100.html , title=Band aus Lesotho begeistert mit Instrumenten aus Abfall , trans-title=Band from Lesotho inspires with instruments made from junk , lang=de , author=Kerstin Poppendieck , work=

, date=2012-05-21 , access-date=2024-10-18 {{citation , url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/sep/27/sotho-sounds-junk-funk-review , title=Sotho Sounds: Junk Funk – review , work=

, author=Robin Denselow , date=2012-09-27 , access-date=2024-10-18 {{citation , url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-sotho-sounds-junk-funk-world-music-network-8190760.html , title=Album: Sotho Sounds, Junk Funk (World Music Network) , work=

, date=2012-09-29 , access-date=2024-10-26 {{citation , url=https://www.songlines.co.uk/review/junk-funk , url-access=limited , title=Junk Funk (review) , work=

Songlines A songline, also called dreaming track, is one of the paths across the land (or sometimes the sky) within the animist belief systems of the Aboriginal cultures of Australia. They mark the route followed by localised "creator-beings" in the Dr ...

, author=Nigel Williamson , issue=Nov/Dec 2012 , issn=1464-8113 , publisher=MA Education & Music Ltd , access-date=2024-10-26 {{citation , url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/life_style/arts_ents/13117448.Music_reviews__Sotho_Sounds___Richard_Digance___Rick_Wakeman/ , title=Music reviews: Sotho Sounds / Richard Digance / Rick Wakeman , work= The Herald , author=Rob Adams , date=2013-08-09 , access-date=2024-10-26 {{cite book , title=Rough Guide to World Music: Africa & Middle East , edition=3rd , volume=1 of 3 , publisher=Rough Guides Ltd. , year=2006 , isbn=1843535513 , chapter=South Africa – Popular Music , author=Rob Allingham , page=360 Lesotho musical groups Sotho culture