The Shango Band is a D.C. area reggae group that sings about real life and current world issues with a likeable mix of smooth, lovers-edged tunes and harder, more "true" roots tunes. With all-encompassing sound, strong instrumentation and quality songwriting, the Shango Band has been performing since the late 1980's and won the award for Best Reggae Band in the 2001 D.C. Annual Reggae Music Awards. The band's bass-player, lead singer, songwriter and producer, Englishman, spent a number of years in England as a youth. He has performed with many reggae bands there and around the U.S. for about 30 years. Englishman received WAMMIE awards in 1989 for Best Male Vocalist, in 1990 for Best Instrumentalist, three in 1991 and two more in 1992. He has been a Master Artist in the D.C. Folks Arts Program for the Commission on the Arts and Humanities. Other members of the Shango Band also have performed with reggae bands throughout Europe and the U.S. They include Eric (Spiduki) McDermott (drummer/singer) and Jackson (Professor) Briscoe, a graduate of Howard University and MIT, where he studied mathematics and classical music. The Shango Band performs at many university night clubs and international events in Europe and the U.S. Their live performance keeps the audience feeling upbeat, irie and positive! Englishman and the Shango Band recorded their latest CD, Got to Know Your Purpose, in Iceland, while completing their European tour.



Bio

The title of their debut album describes it best "Volcanic Music" Bob Dean have set out to create something new in the Manchester music scene. Gigging for almost a year now in and around Manchester, Bob Dean have been praised for exceptional live performances. They've played almost every notable venue in Manchester and were involved in a few festivals over the summer. They also won 2 heats in 2 separate battle of the bands competitions earlier in the year. The band all met at sound recording school in Manchester, the entire album has been written, recorded and mixed by all 5 members of the band and mastered by a good friend who also attended the school. Four tracks on the album also feature a quartet from the BBC philharmonic orchestra which was recorded at Gracieland studios in Rochdale. The influences stretch far and wide between every member of the band, as do where they came from(the UK, Iceland and America) they all have very different tastes in music, but Bob Dean doesn't sound like any particular one, it is very much it's own entity. After 2 years in the making, the band are eager to show the world what they've been cooking up. Volcanic Music is set to be released on iTunes around Christmas of this year.

Members

Viktor Sigurjónsson - Vocals and Acoustic Guitar
Ásgeir Einarsson - Guitar
Tom Leach - Bass
Lewis Hurrell - Keyboards
Charlie Stack - Drums



Followers of Bob Dean