Bleep

Don Zilla has come on in considerable strides since teaching himself to use FL Studio in an internet cafe only a few years ago, dreaming of making a name for himself as one of Africa’s greatest producers. Those early sketches would make up his first EP From The Cave To The World in 2019, setting him firmly on a path to recognition and earmarking him as one of the most singular East African electronic artists.

Now the manager of Kampala's Boutiq Studios, he’s ready to return to Hakuna Kulala with his debut album, Ekizikiza Mubwengula. Across nine tracks, he presents his unique and future-facing take on leftfield club music in full form. Opener ‘Full Moon’ sets the tone instantly, feeling like the inner workings of a juggernaut of war being calibrated with its industrial clanks and machine hiss.

Some of the more club-ready tracks come in the form of ‘Automated’, a form of dystopian, mutant breakbeat, and the frenetic hyper-techno of ‘Moving Space’. Each track feels primed to shake a club rig, it just feels like those clubs don’t even exist yet - such is the idiosyncrasy of tracks like ‘Entambula’ or ‘Ekivuuma’, packed full of wildly swung polyrhythms and alien soundscapes.

A stunning debut from an excitingly singular talent, flying the flag for East African electronics and showcasing the sound's wild potential to the world.