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Martin Khanja (aka Lord Spike Heart) and Sam Karugu emerge from Nairobi's flourishing underground metal scene as former members of the bands Lust of a Dying Breed and Seeds of Datura. Together in 2019 they formed Duma (Darkness in kikuyu), with Sam abandoning bass for production and guitars, and Lord Spike Heart providing extreme vocals to the project.
Their unique sound fuses the frenetic euphoria, unrelenting physicality and rebellious attitude of hardcore punk and thrash metal with bone-crunching breakcore and raw, nihilist industrial noise through a claustrophobic vortex of visceral screams.
Duma are a sinister force, with Khanja’s writing facing pain and difficult emotions head-on. A sonic aggression of feral intensity with disregard for styles, the duo promises to impact the hungry East African metal scene, moving it into totally new, boundary-challenging experimental territories. Their self-titled debut album was released August 7 2020 on Nyege Nyege Tapes, and received accolades from the press, including best album in end-of-the-year lists by The Wire, The Quietus, and more.
Following Duma’s Sub Pop Singles Club release, they will release a new AV collaboration with Jesse Kanda. Aso in the works are a remix for Mdou Moctar, a collaborative album with Indonesian duo Gabber Modus Operandi, and a collaboration with Brazilian metal band Deafbricks.
