For this Afrobeat-influenced track, The Burning Effigies are reunited with former band member, Olu Adeniran, who was deported from Ireland to Nigeria in 2009.
The Burning Effigies had long been fans of Afrobeat and African music in general. The interest grew from a compilation “The Kings Of Highlife” and led inevitably to the works of Fela Kuti. When Nigerian juju musician Walle Thompson wanted a backing band for a gig in Howth in 2006, The Burning Effigies happily obliged. The saxophone player was killing it and the band instantly got him on board. They were gigging together in Dublin city a few days later.
That sax player was Olu Adeniran, originally from Lagos and son of Ade Adeniran who played with Fela in the Egypt 80. Olu grew up going to the Shrine (legendary venue in Lagos) and had crazy talent for vocals and sax. The Burning Effigies had a regular late spot on Sundays at The Turk’s Head where they would do a mix of original tunes, American funk and set of Fela covers led by Olu.
Olu went on to record the 2008 album ‘Stuck in Limbo’ with the band, and they can be seen performing together in a rooftop scene in the 2010 movie ‘Between the Canals’. Sadly, the partnership was cut short when Olu was forced to move back to Nigeria in 2009. Although Olu and the band cannot play together in the same room, they were able to send recordings back-and-forth over the internet to renew their collaboration for this release.
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