Blaq Garden by BLAQ BANDANA

It’s hard to believe that Blaq Bandana is only now releasing his debut album. The Ugandan rapper has cut an exceptionally distinctive figure in the local scene for almost a decade. He skillfully uses the Luganda language, shaping its syllables with knife-like precision in his stories. In Kampala, where he is from, he has collaborated with artists visiting the legendary NYEGE NYEGE STUDIO, such as SLICKBACK from Kenya and CHRISMAN from Congo. He was also featured on the PAN MIXTAPE "Kikommando," which was the result of a production collaboration between SIMONE TRABUCCHI and African rappers. He is well at home with beats that stretch far beyond trap and drill.

"Blaq Garden" was entirely produced by artists connected to the Polish experimental club music scene and the Brutality Garden label: ERVA and TWE.EXE from T’IEN LAI and ||ALA|MEDA||, OSTROWSKI, IFS, and MACIEJ MACIĄGOWSKI. Their approach to beatmakings allows Blaq Bandana’s style to flourish. The rhythms are spacious, built on a contrast between naturally sounding, dense percussion and overwhelming, powerful bass. Trap meets South African House rhythms, and there are clear Gqom influences ("Swear," "Whisky"). This is an intriguing fusion of genres, especially when the boundaries bend to British grime ("Bad") or when the tempo slows down, bringing to the forefront ominous, tension-building melodies and atonal sounds ("Real Talk").

Surrounded by such sounds, Blaq Bandana reaches new heights of linguistic gymnastics, modulating his flow to keep with the dizzying pace of the percussion ("Neighbourhood Watch") or dynamically adjusting to sudden turns when the dominant rhythm shifts mid-way ("Xenophobia," "Where They @"). The rapper talks about life in a city plagued by massive social inequalities. His Kampala is a place of conflict and generational trauma, where Blaq Bandana settles scores with his street opponents. As a pioneer of experimental Rap in Luganda, he clearly communicates the tensions in his environment, conveying anger, frustration, and his pain. We’re immersed in his universe, even without understanding the lyrics.

The album is accompanied by two remixes prepared by AVTOMAT and PASZKA, expanding the Brutality Garden lineup not only in terms of quantity but also by introducing new sounds to the label’s catalog. The first remix of "Swear" features Avtomat’s signature elastic drum sounds and gritty melodies. The second transforms "Whisky" into a multicolored, almost toy-like Gqom, contrasting dark bass with high-pitched percussion sounds - Łukasz Warna Wiesławski

Welcome to Brutality Garden. Art of the peripheries. On the edge of capitalism. Molecular music label. Konk factory. Inquieries/booking: acphale@gmail.com

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