Hot Heads
Studio album by
Les Têtes Brulées
Released1990
GenreBikutsi
LabelShanachie[1]
ProducerAndy Lyden, Jean-Marie Ahanda
Les Têtes Brulées chronology
Man No Run
(1989)		 Hot Heads
(1990)		 Bikutsi Rock
(1991)

Hot Heads is an album by the Cameroonian band Les Têtes Brulées, released in 1990.[2][3] The band supported the album with a North American tour.[4]

Production

Recorded in France, the album was produced by Andy Lyden and Jean-Marie Ahanda.[5][6] The band sang in a Cameroonian vernacular, French, and English.[7][8] Guitar player Theodore "Zanzibar" Epeme committed suicide before the album was released.[7] Epeme was known for applying foam rubber to his guitar to imitate a balafon.[9] Some songs are about musicians leaving the countryside for city life.[8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
Chicago Tribune[11]
MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide[6]

The Gazette deemed the band "Africa's answer to the Red Hot Chili Peppers," writing that "modern bikutsi is a stripped-down sound of chicken-feet guitars, drums that won't quit and the kind of yelping, whooping and singing that says we mean business."[12] The Philadelphia Daily News wrote that Les Têtes Brulées "combine fast tribal rhythms, swirling guitars and abrasive, multi-lingual vocals."[13]

The Chicago Tribune stated: "The star of the show is guitarist Theodore 'Zanzibar' Epeme. His solos are light yet propulsive, building inexorably and seamlessly from skittering rhythm lines."[11] The Houston Chronicle noted that "electric guitars and Western drums have replaced the 'balafon' and percussion, but the vocals are rough, in the ancient folk tradition."[14]

AllMusic wrote: "Consistently inspired, Hot Heads underscores the band's resilient nature."[10] The New York Times listed it among the best albums of 1990.[15] MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide considered Hot Heads "perhaps the greatest African rock 'n' roll ever made."[6]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Za Ayi Neyi" 
2."Naoum Wom" 
3."Ngole Likas" 
4."Têtes Brulées" 
5."Man Fo Job" 
6."Papa" 
7."Ma Musique á Moi" 
8."Ca Fait Mal" 
9."Zanzi Collection" 

References

  1. ↑ Harrison, Tom (30 Apr 1991). "LES TETES BRULEES: Hot Heads". Entertainment. The Province. p. 47.
  2. ↑ "Les Tetes Brulees". Chicago Reader. September 2, 1993.
  3. ↑ Gore, Joe (Mar 1991). "Audio — Hot Heads by Les Tetes Brulees". Guitar Player. 25 (3): 118.
  4. ↑ Kot, Greg (29 Aug 1991). "Les Tetes Brulees...". Chicago Tribune. p. 11A.
  5. ↑ King, Peter B. (February 3, 1991). "'Hot Heads', Les Tetes Brulees". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. J3.
  6. 1 2 3 MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 2000. p. 428.
  7. 1 2 Eichenberger, Bill (January 24, 1991). "POLYRHYTHMS DRIVE MELODIES IN EXOTIC, DELIRIOUS JOURNEYS". Weekender. The Columbus Dispatch. p. 8.
  8. 1 2 Himes, Geoffrey (20 September 1991). "The Debut Sound of Tetes Brulees". The Washington Post. p. N13.
  9. ↑ Barlow, Sean; Eyre, Banning (1995). Afropop!. Chartwell Books, Inc. p. 53.
  10. 1 2 "Les Têtes Brulées - Hot Heads Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  11. 1 2 Kot, Greg (24 Jan 1991). "Les Tetes Brulees Hot Heads". Tempo. Chicago Tribune. p. 9.
  12. ↑ Feist, Daniel (13 Dec 1990). "LES TETES BRULEES – Hot Heads". The Gazette. Montreal. p. D14.
  13. ↑ "POP FACES TO WATCH". Features. Philadelphia Daily News. 3 Jan 1991. p. 31.
  14. ↑ Mitchell, Rick (January 13, 1991). "Pop Recordings". Zest. Houston Chronicle. p. 16.
  15. ↑ Pareles, Jon (30 Dec 1990). "The Best Show? In the Court, Not the Concert Hall". The New York Times. p. A32.
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