Okuleekaana - Okuleekaana

What this video is

Arsenal Mikebe are a Kampala-based percussion ensemble co-founded by Portuguese producer Jonathan Uliel Saldanha alongside Ugandan drummers Ssentongo Moses, Dratele Epiphany, and Luyambi Vincent de Paul. Central to their sound is a steel-cast custom percussion machine reverse-engineered from the Roland TR-808, conceived by Ugandan sculptor Henry Segamwenge. Released September 6, 2024 on Nyege Nyege Tapes — a…

Why it matters

Occupies a rare intersection of Ugandan traditional polyrhythmic percussion, afrofuturism, industrial minimalism, and experimental electronics. Arsenal Mikebe's custom 808-derived percussion machine positions 'Okuleekaana' as a landmark document of hardware-instrument innovation in the Global…