Empire soldiers

Description

Back in October 2013. Nearly a year and a half ago now, the Vibronics and Brain Damage entities brought their respective worlds together for a project that went far beyond a simple meeting. United around a double concept in which two mixing schools with very different sensibilities joined forces — French dub and English sound system — the artists evoke the experience of Anglo-Caribbean and Franco-African soldiers during the First World War, with unmatched narrative force. A delicate and little-addressed subject, for which Brain Damage and Vibronics had the insight to bring together guest poets, historians, and musicians from the countries covered in the album: Senegal, Morocco, Pakistan, the Caribbean. But the collaboration project does not stop there. In the spirit of memory and transmission carried by the Empire Soldiers concept, a tour was organized throughout 2013 and 2014, bringing Brain Damage and Vibronics together on numerous occasions for concerts that left a lasting mark on the minds of a rather young audience, who were able to discover a little-known part of their history through explosive performances. There were nearly 49 dates, including 8 appearances at renowned festivals: Dour Festival, Reggae Geel, Télérama Dub Festival, UNOD Weekender, Fusion Festival, Riddim Collision Festival, Seasplash Festival and Mundial Festival. Empire Soldiers even made its way to Europe. The Empire Soldiers tour is therefore an event in its own right, which prompted the release of a live album to immortalize the fleeting nature of these performances. By putting on record the sounds distilled throughout their joint tour, the combination of the two artists goes further and takes another step toward embedding in people’s minds the history of these forgotten heroes.