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Les Tambours du Bronx drum up a storm

First live DVD followed by extensive national tour


Paris 

06/04/2006 - 

2007 will mark the 20th anniversary of Les Tambours du Bronx, an alternative collective of percussionists from Burgundy who have made their reputation pounding out infectious rhythms on empty tin drums. No less than 80 musicians have passed through the group’s ranks over the years and, in the course of six albums and thousands of concerts, they have smashed up 10,000 drums and 80,000 wooden mallets. The group’s recently-released DVD of their current show, where drums are joined by electro loops and raucous rap, gives an impressive display of Les Tambours’ rhythmic skills and physical strength.

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RFI Musique hooks up with Map, the group’s stage manager (and a former drummer for twelve years) who looks back on the drum squad’s history and their alternative past as an indie band.

RFI Musique: The group’s about to celebrate their 20th anniversary together. Looking back, what would you say the founding principles of Les Tambours du Bronx were?
Map: When we started out, the basic idea was to organise a sort of ‘happening.’ Our act was short, brutal and utterly urban. In other words, it was designed to start a buzz and get us talked about. Originally, we were a bunch of mates, all of us into rock and percussion, and we grew up together in this neighbourhood of Nevers (in the Nièvre region) which had a reputation for being a bit dodgy – that’s why everyone called it the Bronx! So that’s where we got our name from. As for our idea of using empty tin drums as instruments, that was simply down to the fact that we didn’t have much cash and we thought it would be a good way of getting ourselves heard. When we started out there were 18 people in the group, now there are 22. On the whole, over the past two decades, I’d say there’s been between at least 15 and 25 of us in all.

 

How has the group evolved over the years?
I’d say Les Tambours du Bronx have undergone a major change of musical direction in the course of the past ten years. Thumping on tin drums produces the most incredible rhythmic energy, but we got to a point where the musicians involved wanted to start mixing in new ingredients. Over the past couple of years we’ve started performing with keyboards and mixing decks which means that our sound now has new layers and a new depth. We’ve also started working with singers and rappers which adds another dimensions to Les Tambours.

 

You pay particular attention to the staging of your live shows which include sections that look almost choreographed as well as some spectacular lighting effects…
We’ve put a lot of work into the lights and the sound of the drums over the years. These days, our act isn’t a twenty-minute ‘happening’, it’s a full-blown show that lasts a full hour and a half. I think the DVD really captures the spectacle of it all – and all the more so, as this is the first time in our career, apart from TV appearances, that there have been images of the group. We really tried to put the same energy into making the DVD as we do into our live shows.

Given the fact that your shows are highly visual and that there are a good twenty of you up on stage, do you think the group could be seen as some sort of ‘new circus’ troupe?
No, we’re very much a rock group. That’s where our influences come from and that's what our history is built on. The first gigs we ever performed were part of the alternative rock movement in France. We used to play at the same gigs as Les Garçons Bouchers, La Mano Negra, Les Négresses Vertes, Les Wampas and Pigalle. In fact, apart from Les Wampas, we’re the only group still around today! (Laughs) I think that once you’ve managed to handle the fact that there’s not one songwriter but many and that there’s always a whole bunch of you up on stage, you’re OK. But it’s not always easy. I mean, think about it, things can be pretty tough when there’s four or five of you, so imagine twenty of you putting your heads together and having to work things out!

 
 
The human side of things has always been essential for us. And I think it’s fair to say we all share the same mindset. Even though we’ve all got different influences and different musical tastes – and even if we don’t all live together in the same caravan! – there’s a sort of tribal, community thing going on with us. The fact that we’ve had so many musicians in the group and that in the current line-up the age ranges from 25 to 47 means we’re constantly renewing our energy and regularly questioning what we do.

How can you be sure that you’ve smashed up exactly 10,000 tin drums and 80,000 mallets?
Because we keep a close eye on our accounts! We get all our supplies from the same metal drum-making factory in Normandy. And our mallets, made out of beech wood, account for an important part of our instrument budget. Can you think of any other musicians who systematically smash up guitars, bass and drums on stage every night? It’s vital for us to destroy our instruments at the end of each show because that proves just how much physical energy we’ve put into the performance, that we’ve really given our all. And the audience loves it! I’m not ashamed to say that our concerts are just as much about physical displays of strength as they are about music!

DVD Les Tambours du Bronx Live (Naïve) 2006
In concert at L’Elysée-Montmartre (Paris) on 6 April and on tour in France until August 2006.

Guillaume  Lévy

Translation : Julie  Street