In 2018, there aren’t many thriving boybands, more so made up of black artists in Africa, not many topping chart lists yet anyway. Other than the likes of Kenya’s pop group Sauti Sol, bet most, or any random music enthusiast can’t name more than three at ago. How about how many rock boy bands exist in Africa today? Though not so many, there’s an emerging community of rockers and heavy metal warriors from Africa that cannot be wished away; such as the brewing edgy rock boyband out of West Africa, that’s representing the rock sound to full effect in Africa, and as it were, a uniquely characterized rock band.
Dark Suburb is a Ghanaian Alternative Rock band, and just as leading as their stage name would suggest, their music tends to be on the side of Gothic and filled with mystique.
The group’s five members aim to refine a culture of costume art masquerading in skull masks, a concept that’s prevalent in African societies. Their music incorporates a variety of percussive instrumentation, combining pianos, guitars, and drums. Their lead is a poet who takes on the character of The Priest, lending absolute credence to some very ‘Gothic suburban’ behavior.
Some folk have coined a tale about the lead, The Priest, evoking them from the dead to come and entertain and educate the world through the most expressive style of music, rock. The group definitely takes art expression down to a science.
Their debut album, The Start Looks Like The End, released in 2017, was a well-put-together semi-rock compilation of soul and rhythm and blues peppered with soulful acoustics, harsh chords, piano, and guitars.
Most recently, they released Mine, one of my personal gems, a gripping ballad hailing a loved one ‘that blows his mind’ while literally wooing and cooing, begging and praying, ‘Inshallah you’ll be mine’. The beats are laid so well with melodic instruments ranging from the xylophone to the guitar and some horns, creating a vibe that can’t be denied.
While they predominantly use the English language, there are some songs where they inject some slang from their local dialect. This is witnessed in some tracks like Mama, whose visuals are adorned in traditional African regalia so richly dark, and accentuated by melanin soprano-ed award-winning Wiyaala, adding to the black magic. Ndoo, produced by Ivan Beatz, also a recent release, loosely translates to friend, and is another that’s dipped in the local lingo.
Right from the same riff comes yet another 2018 release, Wobaa Daben, also produced by Ivan Beatz, which picks off with that tribal vibe and heavy percussion, resting on gradually frill guitars as The Priest layers over his poetry and naturally commanding the skeleton party to his vocal gestures.
Dark Suburb’s melodies are woven together with cultural elements from the African perspective and some slight elements of hip-hop, as in their previous release, EgoBe. They are creating a voice for themselves by addressing social injustices through their music, affirmed by tracks like Politrick,s and have even been referred to as the Ghanaian Justice League in Rock.
While their music might not necessarily be in any other person’s spectrum of music in your playlist, even in your shuffle mode, there’s a little something for everyone from these emerging stars.
| Afroway
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