Lamwong: Freedom Fighters

The musicians from the Acholi tribe in remote northern Uganda were recorded on Lamwong by producer Ian Brennan, known for his work with Malawi Mouse Boys, The Good Ones and Tinariwen. It's a bare-bones production, and could almost be a polished-up field recording, centred upon lead singer and prolific songwriter Gaetano Otira Tep Yer Yer. He sometimes uses spoken-word interludes in a mixture of English and Acholi, and plays a frantically buzzing likembé (thumb piano). His duelling partner in the likembé and vocal stakes is Kornelio Odong Mulili, backed up by percussion from the numerous other members of the group.

These are largely protest songs, with the exception of what seem to be two love songs. Tep Yer Yer does not offer much in the way of memorable melodies and, given that it's a thumb piano-based recording, there are none of the dreamy, hypnotic atmospheres you might expect; the pace and tone are pretty relentless over the 13 tracks.