Dhamba 8

Dave Klopfenstein, trombone; Mathew Olaiya, percussion. A ninth member of the band, Konal Kirsten (percussion/guitar/keyboar ds), left the band in May to accept a job in London but will sit in with the band whenever he`s back in Chicago. Background: Heath and Nicholls formed Dhamba 8 ''out of the ashes of another band called Temple Blue in May, 1990,'' says Hill. ''The current lineup has been fairly consistent for about a year.'' Sound: According to Hill, Dhamba 8`s sound is a combination of ''African, Caribbean, soul, funk and jazz sounds, put through a strainer and coming out as our own.'' He adds, ''We`re very percussion-oriented.'' Influences: ''Tunji and Mathew are from Nigeria, and we`re heavily influenced by Nigerian juju music, which is a percussion-based style, and a Nigerian superstar named Fela. We`re also influenced by James Brown, New Orleans R&B stuff and free jazz artists like Ornette Coleman,'' says Hill. Songwriting: Hill, Nicholls and Warden do most of Dhamba 8`s songwriting; some compositions are group efforts. Onstage cover versions: ''We do very obscure African, soul and reggae covers, stuff that very few people might be familiar with,'' says Hill. Recordings: The group just released a three-song mini-CD recorded at Metro Mobile and plans to record a full-length CD (possibly live) in October or November. Memorable experiences: During a recent Dhamba 8 show in Champaign, the club`s electrical power went out for about 20 minutes. ''We could have stood around onstage looking befuddled, but instead we went into a long percussion jam,'' says Hill. ''The audience loved it. Everyone just kept right on dancing. Last New Year`s Eve was pretty memorable, too. We played at a party in a big warehouse near the Chicago River. We went on right after the stroke of midnight and continued until 7 a.m.'' Local viewpoint: ''Chicago has a really great music scene-you can get a taste of just about every type of music here,'' says Hill. ''People think of Chicago as a blues town first and foremost, but jazz and world music are strong here, too. Whenever we`re not performing, we`re always out seeing other bands.'' Goals: ''Traveling to expand our fan base is important to us,'' says Hill. This fall, the group will travel to New York City to perform at a College Music Journal showcase, and next spring the band hopes to attend the South by Southwest conference in Austin and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. And like most other musicians, the members of Dhamba 8 ''would like to be able to live comfortably playing music full-time.''