A traditional Adungu and Nanga harp master and singer, Otim Alpha got his musical start as a wedding leader in his hometown of Gulu City and is one of the few musicians to have passed on and preserved Acholi folk traditions.
Like Omar Souleyman, who plays Syrian wedding songs over digital keys and programmed drums, in 2001 Otim Alpha and producer Leo Palayeng took the traditional Larakaraka wedding music of the Acholi people of northern Uganda and southern Sudan and reworked it with computer software, synths and electronic drum-kit beats. The result was a newer, hyper-frenetic electronic version known as Acholitronix. Since then, his pioneering concepts have inspired an exhilarating micro-scene, synthesising electronic sounds and traditional instrumentation into a fast-paced, polyrhythmic genre primed for dancefloor madness.
Recent releases include the critically acclaimed hit collection ‘Gulu City Anthems’ on NNT (2017). Otim Alpha is also featured on two projects with long-time collaborator and friend Jesse Hackett (Gorillaz, Owiny Sigoma Band): the recent ‘Metal Prayers’ (NNT, 2020) and ‘Ennanga Vision’ (Soundways, 2018) with the track ‘Otim’s War’.