WITCH

Zamrock, the Afro-rock genre that swept southern Africa in the 1970s, was born in the Copperbelt region of northern Zambia, and WITCH was at the center of it all. In the beginning, lead singer Emmanuel ‘Jagari’ Chanda and the band looked for a name to match edgy rock sounds coming from Europe and America. First they tried Kingston Market, which sounded too reggae-ish, then they tried Footswitch, but there was a local artist called Dr Footswitch, so they shortened it to Switch, and then finally WITCH. “The posters were handwritten,” Jagari recalled, “so we would draw somebody on a broomstick.” Hot out of the gate, WITCH signed to Teal Records and began touring in a truck with a canopy emblazoned with the words: “Trespassers will be eaten” The graphic artist who wrote those words also gave the band its enduring acronym: We Intend To Cause Havoc. Jagari recalls, “There was no hesitation. Everyone agreed” And the rest is history.

Fast forward four decades, and Jagari, along with veteran keyboardist/composer Patrick Mwondela, now lead a new, multi-national formation of the band. Sogolo is their second 21st century release. It’s the follow up to Zango (2021), which was recorded against all odds in the same Lusaka studio that WITCH frequented in the ‘70s—funky and dilapidated, but with a vibe that heralded a reawakening for the band.

All this came as a surprise to Jagari, who had been trying his hand at gemstone mining when filmmaker Gio Arlotta arrived in 2014 - during Zambia’s jubilee independence celebration - to begin work on his 2019 documentary WITCH (We Intend to Cause Havoc). The gemstone quest was a bust, but Jagari recalls, “Sometimes when one door closes, another will open, and that turns out to be WITCH resurrected. Amazing! It has given me a new lease of life.”

Sogolo was tracked in Berlin, during a 10-day break in the band’s 2024 tour schedule. The lineup included Cuban-Dominican percussionist Charlie Garmendia, guitarist Stefan Lilov, Jacco Gardner on bass, Nicola Mauskovic on drums, and two singers from Zambia, Hannah Tembo and Theresa Ng'ambi. “Sometimes we just jammed,” says Jagari. “But we tolerated one another and trusted their contributions. Fortunately, what has come out seems to be good. Each one feels they have contributed something.”  

Sogolo means “future, or front” echoing a longstanding ethic of the band, going back to their 1980 disco album, Moving On. Jacco Gardner produced Sogolo. “The studio for Zango wasn't in use for bands for decades, so we had to really make it work,” he recalls. A more “practical” option turned out to be Big Snuff Studio in Berlin. “We would all be together, and in shape because we're on tour, playing every night. So we had a good dynamic going as a band.” The studio was well-tooled but small, and time was tight. Jacco felt the pressure. “This was a big deal,” he says. “We were contributing to the legacy of a legendary band with a dense discography and history.” 

Jagari’s song “Kamusale” punches with crunchy guitar, crying vocals and a “Helter Skelter” vibe, but it’s based on a Bemba children’s game song. “Children gather under the moonlight in the village and pretend to be preparing themselves for marriage,” says Jagari. “So we are saying as kids, be careful who you pick. Don't follow the beauty of the face or body. Go deeper into the character and make sure you are marrying the right person.” Funky and urgent, Jagari’s “Queenless King,” also deals with the perils of marriage, specifically what happens when family pressure forces a bad decision. “You are enticed to marry someone because of her beauty, not knowing that her true colors are very cunning. In the end you discover her wicked ways. You end up being a queenless king.” 

The elders of WITCH strive to nurture younger musicians. “At this stage in our life,” says Patrick, “We would love to empower young musicians to use our platform. For us, it's not about chasing fame and fortune; it's making sure the legacy continues.” That’s how singers Theresa Ng'ambi and Hanna Tembo got recruited into the band during the Zango session.

“Machiriso,” a loping, groovy Afro-rap number, grew out of a duo bass jam between Jacco and Jagari during a lunch break. “We were doing two basses,” recalls Jagari, “and then Theresa came in to sing randomly. She's saying, ‘We have gathered together as WITCH to give you the message of love and peace.’” The rolling ternary rhythms of “Nibani” come from a sound check jam among the musicians. “We didn't even know it was being recorded,” says Jacco. “Nadi” is the hardest rocking track on the album. “With that song,” says Jacco, “we tried to reference the heavy Zamrock sound.” That’s the garage band style that WITCH began with before verging into more complex progressive rock, then traditional rhythms, Afrobeat vibes, and in the early ‘80s, disco. As Jacco put it, “We had a lot to reference.”

“Tiponde Madzi,” another track born from a hotel room jam, veers mback and forth between a ritualistic slow march and a rollicking 6/8 groove. Jagari explains that the words tell an old story in which animals gather looking for water by stomping on the earth. They compete for success, but in the end, it’s the humble tortoise who finds the water. “The tortoise is the one they belittled. ‘What can you do? You have no strength.’ So there’s a moral lesson: don't underestimate anyone.”

Patrick says the essence of WITCH’s sound is emotion. “This is how music touches people. It could be love, it could be war, it could be anything, but music is emotional.” Patrick’s reggae/gospel song “Totally Devoted” takes words from the Bible’s Psalm 23. “We can go through problems, we can go through the valley of the shadow of death, but I fear no evil because God is with me.” Jagari notes that this song was inspired by Patrick’s traumatic experience. “While we were on tour in Chicago, Patrick fell ill,” he recalls. “He had bloodclots in his lungs, so it was a threat to his life, and he didn't finish the tour. So he is saying thank you to the Lord Jesus Christ.”

After the hurried sessions in Berlin, Jacco had work to do rounding out and finishing the songs. He and Charlie added percussion overdubs and cosmic ambient sonics. “The studio had a lot of analog electronic instruments,” says Jacco, “and I have a weak spot for German electronic music from the ‘70s, flavors that had Zambian vibes. This is a more futuristic album than Zango, and they trusted me in the creative process. I felt honored to be allowed to experiment.”

True to that futuristic spirit, Jagari and Patrick are looking ahead, not back. “The Rolling Stones?” says Jagari. “How long have they been together? A long, long time. They have money, but they're still doing something they love. I think it's the same thing with us. My hope is that the longer we stay together, whether with the young ones, the old ones, whoever can fit into the genre, they're welcome.” Patrick concurs, “There's more to come, and more songs to share with the world.”