Arguably the Best Genre You May Not Have Heard of: Zamrock
Graphics by Alex Magozzi
Listen to this Zamrock Essentials playlist curated by the author while you read.
Zamrock has made a resurgence recently, with bands like WITCH releasing new content, the short explosion of Zambian arts and music in the 60s-70s have touched the hearts and piqued the interest of many people today.
In short, Zamrock stands for Zambian rock.
And the name represents the genre that formed during the period in time post liberation from Britain, where Zambia experienced an influx of Zambian artists producing western influenced psychedelic rock. Think funk and soul of James Brown and the heavy rock of Hendrix, The Who, and Led Zeppelin, but with African polyrhythmics throughout the production.
On October 24th, 1964, Zambia announced its independence from the United Kingdom. With independence came an increasing want to reclaim culture, so prime minister Kenneth Kaunda poured money, which was now available from the copper mines, into the arts.
Many people, the youth especially, were into influences such as Jimi Hendrix and The Beatles, and began to create their own music.
It is important to note that there were no recording studios in Zambia at the time.
Eventually, a band called WITCH (we intend to cause havoc), had a link to a record pressing facility in Nairobi Kenya, and made 200 copies of their debut album ‘Introduction’, being one of the first ever recorded pieces of Zambian music.
And shortly after WITCH’s debut, the president of Zambia introduced a bill requiring radio stations to play 90 percent Zambian music, creating the ZBS (Zambian broadcasting service). This resulted in a boom in arts and culture, specifically music. Several bands then became successful in developing this new sound, some highlights being Amanaz, Peace, the Ngozi Family, and the aforementioned WITCH. An enormous amount of pioneering music came out of places such as Kenya, Ghana, and Nigeria. And the combination of African polyrhythms with psychedelic and garage rock had been done incredibly well in Zamrock, which was forged by a particular set of national circumstances.
Zambia can be argued as a “post-colonial” country.
The term “postcolonial” is hotly debated, so in this case I’m using it as a way to describe a nation that had previously been under explicit colonial power. Many countries under European colonial rule were controlled through a top down system, meaning institutions were designed by the colonial powers to control populations from above, hence protecting the state from its own people rather than outside forces. Many post-colonial states became weak and would continue to have trouble maintaining resources or carrying out policies. These factors are unfortunately what contributed to Zamrock’s initially short-lived life. Zambia was unequipped to deal with public and financial emergencies, mainly the AIDS epidemic and a slump in copper prices, which is Zambia’s main form of income.
As much as I love music, when looking at it as an industry, there’s no denying that it’s intertwined with colonialism.
This is why the top charts more than often were English speakers from the US or UK .
However, the exact opposite could also be argued. From the 50s to early 70s, there was an explosion of popular music, along with major developments in sound technology and exchanges between the west, east, and global south.
All of these developments took place in an era of decolonization and at times, popular music played a role in raising anti-colonial resistance.
About six years ago, the master tapes for Amanaz were rediscovered and reissued to the vast majority of the world for the very first time. And bands like WITCH, with a new lineup, would begin touring and making music again. The characteristics of these circumstances define what Zamrock is as a movement: defiance of oppressive rule and celebration of independence.
And although short lived, this genre electrified an entire nation, which I think makes Zamrock the sound of celebration.
Listen to this Zamrock Essentials playlist curated by the author while you read.