Words by Jesse Serwer, Photos by Martei Korley—

Words by Jesse Serwer, Photo by Martei Korley—

The dominant sound in Dominica today, bouyon was developed in the 1980s by bands like WCK, combining elements of kadans (or cadence-lypso), the folk style jing-ping and a quick-paced electronic drum pattern similar to soca. More recently, deejays with raggamuffin-style vocals inspired by dancehall have moved to the fore, updating the sound for the youth.
Words by Jesse Serwer—

You might recall a couple months ago we told you about Sofrito: International Soundclash, Hugo Mendez and Frankie Francis of London-based “tropical” DJ collective Sofrito’s compilation connecting the dots between African, Caribbean and South America rhythms with rediscovered rarities from Trinidad’s Lord Shorty, Haiti’s Les Difficiles de Petion-Ville, Guadeloupe’s Mas Ka Klé and more. To celebrate the release of the comp today, Strut Records has given us an exclusive download of one of the most brilliant tracks on the set, “O Ti Yo,” from the kings of cadence-lypso, the Midnight Groovers.
Words by Erin MacLeod
As you read this, the World Creole Music Festival is happening in Roseau, Dominica. This is the fifteenth annual staging of the event, which has drawn artists from across the Caribbean and around the world. This year, there’s three days of music featuring creole music superstars alongside African music and even reggae and soca. This year, the festival plays host to artists like Kassav’s Joycelyne Berouard and Jean-Philippe Marthely, Carimi, WCK, Harmonik and Fanny J, among others.