Neil Sparkes, the man behind Transglobal Underground and Temple of sound, to name but two of his projects, has dreamed up yet another band to pursue his inventive brand of percussive fusionism.
Burning Mask unites African and Latin influences with thundering house kick drums, spluttering break beat passages and heavy dub bass lines.
Sparkes effortlessly unites contemporary dance floor sounds with roots music – a trick that is only helped by his regular trips to hang out with Afican drummers in Cuba.
The album kicks in with the Caribbean beach party meets Brick Lane street groove of 'Voodoo Island', builds to carnival house on 'The Sun Also Rises', flips into the bazaar drum frenzy of the title track, and peaks with the splintering drum 'n' bass of 'Heart of Congo'.
Click above for dotmusic's exclusive live recording of Niel Sparkes And The Last Tribe at the invite only launch of the album.
