30

SATURDAY

I love ’70s Afrobeat. So when I first heard that D.C. outfit Chopteeth was paying homage to that era, the music snob in me wanted to hate it. I mean, c’mon, Fela’s dead, folks. And he sure never sat around covering music from 30 years earlier. Plus, hasn’t Antibalas cornered the market on making African music safe for jam-banders? Then it dawned on me: Not every combo has to be innovative to be entertaining. And though I wish Chopteeth would try something new (adding old ska beats doesn’t count) or muster up some hint of Fela’s on-the-edge persona, I gotta grudgingly admit that the band’s highlife guitar grooves and James Brown–influenced horns are decent enough to get ya dancing. Chopteeth plays at 6 p.m. on the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage. Free. (202) 467-4600. (Steve Kiviat)