Nguzunguzu Head Up M.I.A. After-Party At Evil Olive

By Jake Guidry in Arts & Entertainment on Sep 29, 2010 6:40PM

M.I.A. will play The Vic tonight in what is the first of two shows (the second being tomorrow). What we really want to discuss is the after-party Thursday at Evil Olive. The club's weekly Let's Get Weird night will hold the event with sets from several DJs, including one from M.I.A.'s very own tour DJs, Nguzunguzu. As the night's title suggests, things will get weird and very, very sweaty.

Nguzunguzu is Daniel Pineda and Asma Maroof. Based in Los Angeles, the duo exists in a hybrid genre that, like their own name, may elude pronunciation. That's because Nguzunguzu are a part of a movement in music that has yet to be given a name, much less a way to pronounce it. Like contemporaries L-Vis 1990, Kingdom, Dubbel Dutch, Cedaa, LOL Boys, Canblaster, C.R.S.T. and a whole mess of folks from the UK, Nguzunguzu's music contains so many varied styles that it defies classification; one more hitch in a music journalist's need to label everything. In our earnest, we'd call Nguzunguzu bass/dubstep/cumbia/house/R&B/crunk/juke; or really-fucking-good for short. You can grab their self-released EP for free with a few click-throughs, if you are so inclined.

Nguzunguzu will be joined by Total Freedom, whom we hear is one of the better genre-without-a-name DJs out there, as well as Capcom and Disco Death Threat. This will be one of the more compelling, refreshing DJ nights to come through Chicago in a while; clearly a call to start your weekend early.

M.I.A. After Party is Thursday, Evil Olive, 1551 W. Division, FREE before 12:30, $5 after, 21+