Any bar in Matonge on a Friday or Saturday night is a candidate for one of the best nights out in Africa. The neighbourhood has a dozen live music venues ranging from corrugated-roof shacks with a single band to larger clubs where you might catch musicians with genuine regional reputations. Congolese rumba -- all fluid guitar lines and rolling rhythm sections -- is the foundation, and ndombolo dancing is what happens when people respond to it. The combination is infectious.
The best nights start late and go until dawn. Go with a local guide who knows the current venues and the current security situation -- both change. Dress simply, leave valuables at the hotel, and drink Primus or Tembo, the local beers, which are cold and cheap. The experience of live music in Matonge is what Kinshasa is for many of the travelers who make the considerable effort to come here, and it does not disappoint.