“What’s that up in the sky? Is it a bird. Is it a plane? No it’s Barulho!” They are a forty piece samba band smashing out the marching rhythms from the circle balcony to get the audience dancing down below as the acoustic beats roar around the dome. It really is carnival time.
The Dome is full of faces drawn from the ages of Brighton; chit chatting, catching up, reminiscing, smiling, plotting new adventures. There is a palpable sense of delight, not least down to the fact that possibly a third of the people in there will at some point be on the stage tonight.
Hands are in the air as Dave Rothwell warns the assembled masses there will be no loo break. “Look who is behind me!” he cries as an explosion of pink and blue takes to stage and hand claps turn into a mutant cumbia samba beast of a Latin tune.
There must now be 40 musicians on the stage. A clear sign that the rejuvenated Carnival Collective has rediscovered its mojo, despite having an almost entirely different line up to the band that many of the crowd remember fondly from the Kemptown Carnival or silly times in the many fields of Somerset.
“Are you all hot and sweaty” shouts a new singer, covered head to toe in pink sequins. She certainly must be must be in that outfit!! She then sings a song about wanting to have fun. How can you not? The song does what it says on the tin!
After a make the crowd go low moment, Ollie Tumner takes to the stage to lead the band in a really brass heavy funk tune, that has a nice edge of welcome old school heavier filth after some of the cleaner sounding earlier tunes.
We are then treated to a film interlude, put together by Alex Bamford, full of memories of the history of the group, from its punk origins through to the present day.
The band then changes. The full Carnival Collective of 2005, with founder member Pat Power as mestre, is now on stage as some throat singing pulls in ‘Little Fluffy Surdos’ as heard on the 2003 ‘Call of the Large’ Album.
The new school meats old school as musicians from every era join the stage as Bunty, Carol and Faye lead ‘Cisko Kid’.
Then Dave Rothwell center stage for the mestre spot for ‘Porker’; a touch of fat brassy beautiful ska, with Can Can dancing and liberated silliness, served on a bed of sweet juicy fat brass.
The baton is firmly handed back to Ryan Kearsey and the current band as ‘Green and Yellow’ starts in South America. It is tough for the new band to compete with the nostalgic joy that is the foundation of this night, but they give it their all beautifully. The newer band is also not afraid to drop an old anthem with ‘No No No’.
Chris Tofu then takes to the decks and the assembled masses dance the night away before the band heads off for a celebratory after party.
Brighton Festival Presents – Carnival Collectve
Brighton Dome – 12th May
Words: Nick McAllister
Pictures: Stan O’Shea
