Commandant Coustou
Magnetic Island
Launched in late 2013 by five musicians from Lyon, France, the original idea of this band is to come together over a repertoire of old Trinidadian calypsos from the 1930s to '40s. Touched to the core by the poignant and raging energy of these old minor calypsos, they decide to embrace this music. After exploring the richness of this long ignored repertoire, Commandant Coustou soon added related influences to their set, like Cuban son, Haitian twoubadou and biguines from Martinique. Keeping the light-hearted spirit of Calypso, as well as the storming flow of the lyrics and the typical Trinidadian percussions, the sound of the quintet fills out and becomes more diversified, in tune with the amazing profusion of the Afro-Caribbean music.