Wrasse/Knitting Factory

The Marley sons know a thing or two about stepping out of the shadow of a famous father – so does Femi Kuti. Sometimes it starts with putting together your own band (in this case, The Positive Force), but it’s all rendered pointless if you don’t have a clear vision about where you want to take the music. In that sense, Africa for Africa marks a re-awakening for Kuti, who came back to the sweaty confines of the old Decca Studio in Lagos, Nigeria to make what he calls an “aggressive” Afro-beat album with a message. “We all feel the same pain,” he sings over a percolating bass groove in “Politics in Africa” – a declaration that might ring hollow if Kuti had recorded Africa for Africa the slick-sounding Paris studio where he worked on 2008’s lackluster Day by Day. Whether he’s pushing the tempo ( “Boys Dey Hungry for Town” ) or slowing to a grind ( “No Blame Them” ), Fela’s first son has returned to form with a vengeance.