When Damon Albarn, Red Hot Chili Pepper's bassist Flea and renowned Nigerian drummer and songwriter Tony Allen take the stage this October they'll reportedly be joined by, count 'em, 28 other performers, including Malian singer Fatoumata Diawara, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Theo Parrish and Dan the Automator.
Some form of collaboration between the three main players has been mooted for a while, and this looks set to be the first public airing of material developed since the trio first came together for Albarn and Oxfam's DRC Music project.
Oxfam's DRC Music
The project saw the prolific Gorillaz auter leading a collective of artists and producers to the Democratic Republic of Congo to record an album in 7 days. You can read more about that process on the DRC Music blog.
While Flea doesn't appear on the DRC Music project itself he did recently visit the area with new Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, and early reports suggest that an Afro-funk influence will be evident on forthcoming RHCP album, I'm With You (released August 30).
Who is Honest Jon?
Honest Jon's is the record label Albarn created alongside a group of record shop owners, and is a subsidiary of Parlophone. And yes, there was a first Honest Jon's Chop Up! at the Barbican, London in 2008.
Another Honest Jon's Chop Up! will open the Cork festival on October 28, before heading to London on the 29th.
