The tune is written during the lockdowns, in a process of swapping demos over the internet and one by one recording in the studio. Studio magic is conjured up with the creative contributions of friends performing their signature tricks.
'Mehal Sefari' is a lyric-heavy tune about war, greed and repressive rulers. A personal testimony coming from Miki Mac's life.

released April 2, 2022
Vocals & lyrics - Miki Mac
Drums, shekere & bell - Stan Hennes
Farfisa, congas & tambourine - Frederik Kühn
Farfisa, Arp & Hammond - Micky Peeters
Guitar - Robby Swiggers
Bass - Steve Vandervoort

Recorded, mixed & produced by FREDERIK KÜHN
Written & arranged by FREDERIK KÜHN
Mastered by FREDERIK DEJONGH at JERBOA MASTERING

Alpacas Collective - Mehal Sefari

Stranger To Myself originated from studying the pentatonic Ethiopean scales used in one of our major influences, the classic ethio-jazz, as recorded during the sixties and seventies.

Experimenting with the ambassel scale immediately led to mysterious and dreamy melodies, which became the blueprint for Stranger To Myself.

At the time, we had just acquired a few old combo organs, which were just screaming to be part of the song, adding some old skool vibe.

Initially, the song would feature a vibraphone, but we actually grew too fond of the provisional xylophone on the track to have it replaced.

And so, things fell into place for Stranger To Myself. Hope you’ll enjoy it.

released April 11, 2022
Guitar - Robby Swiggers
Congas, shakers - Frederik Kühn
Drums - Stan Hennes
Xylophone, djembé - Sander Vos
Bass - Steve Vandervoort
Tenor sax - Alexander Dingens
Trombone & Baritone - Marc Jans
Farfisa, Elka Panther - Jeroen Ollevier

Recorded, mixed & produced by FREDERIK KÜHN
Written by ROBBY SWIGGERS
Arranged by ALPACAS COLLECTIVE
Mastered by FREDERIK DEJONGH at JERBOA MASTERING

Alpacas Collective - Stranger To Myself

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Alpacas Collective - Tilahun

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Following the release of their debut album ‘Seven Wisdoms of Plutonia’ in autumn 2022, which received a warm worldwide reception on radios and genre blogs, Belgium’s Alpacas Collective is back with the single ‘Gunkali’.

Gunkali was written on a winter day after listening to the scale, it's a straight forward raag, and you can execute it freely. We tried to lift the sitar melody to a more funky, afrobeat approach with some hardhitting horn lines and a dirty guitar theme. Due to Frederik Kühn’s massive production ‘Gunkali’ sounds fresh, uplifting and makes you want to dance!

Recorded, Mixed & Produced by FREDERIK KÜHN
Mastered by FREDERIK DEJONGH at JERBOA MASTERING
Design & Illustration by LM Lambrechts

Personnel:
Joël van Roode - sitar
Frederik Kühn - tambourine, cabasa, claves & triangle
Stan Hennes - drums
Steve Vandervoort - bass
Robby Swiggers - Guitar
Jeroen Ollevier - piano
Jérome Swevers - flute
Hans van Scharen - baritone, alto, tenor & soprano saxophone
Marc Jans - trombone & baritone sax
Alexander Dingens - tenor sax

Recorded, mixed & produced by FREDERIK KÜHN
Mastered by FREDERIK DEJONGH at JERBOA MASTERING

Alpacas Collective - Gunkali

From album "BIG WORDS" - out in November (LP/CD/DIGITAL)
https://alpacascollective.bandcamp.com/album/big-words

Alpacas Collective is super proud to release the second single from our new album to the world titled
Movéfèzè, or 'wrongdoers' or 'bad guys' in Creole. Creole? Yes, you read that correctly. Those who know
us know that we are inspired by music and languages from all corners of the world and for this new track
we make a stop in the Caribbean, the island of Martinique to be precise.
Movéfèzè is an intoxicating, hypnotic cocktail of funky jazz vibes, larded with a poetic and lyrical rap by
Nèg Madnick, who was inspired by the track originally called'The Sorcerer'. Nèg Madnick - one of the
hip-hop pioneers in Martinique who was the very first to start rapping political lyrics in Creole in the
early 1990s. He wrote his blazing lyrics that gave a new sound and name to the tune.
In the song 'Movéfèzè', Nèg Madnick denounces the wealthy plantation owners who poisoned his
beautiful Caribbean island with toxic pesticides and the lack of justice; These descendants of the colonial
era - who grew rich through forced labour of enslaved people and sugar production, and still largely
control the island's economy - used a specific DDT-like pesticide called 'chloredecone' for the large
plantations of export bananas.
While this pesticide was banned in the US since the late 60ies and the WHO called it carcinogenic in
1979, ‘the banana-cartel’ kept using it’s stocks well into the 90’ies, knowing very well that they were
putting people and ecosystems at risk. The widespread use of chlordecone in these French Caribbean
islands poisoned the soil and water and been linked to unusually high rates of prostate cancer.
After a decade of campaigning and protesting by action groups like ‘Zéro chlordécone, zéro poison’, it
was only in 2018 that French head of state Macron agreed that France was responsible for what the
President himself called "an environmental scandal". But it is a human rights issue, which the French state
does not want to reciognise, maybe because it would cost too much?

If one listens well somehow the track ‘Movéfèzè transmits dormant emotions of anger and rebellion, a
revolt that could emerge from the luscious bush at any moment: serious shit, on a dangerous groove!
Enjoy the Maroonjazzfunk !

Alpacas Collective

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