Boi Akih Entangled & Voices of the Moluccas

What to expect

Boi Akih is vocalist Monica Akihary and guitarist and composer Niels Brouwer, working together since 1997.

Their eleventh album, Entangled, is on Enja Records and looks at the interdependence of people and nature and the fragility of that relationship.

The music draws on many styles and comes into being in the moment, between composition and improvisation.

The second part centres on Voices of the Moluccas, a larger line-up built on the Lagu Lagu repertoire.

That repertoire is centuries-old Moluccan song, captured in field recordings from 1948 and reshaped with the energy of today.

The line-up also includes vocalists Julya Lo’ko and Maria Lekranty, pianist Mark Milan, bassist David de Marez Oyens and drummer Viqtor Lekranty.

The musicians share a history in the Moluccan Moods Orchestra.

• Catchy songs flow into free improvisation
• Spontaneity brings urgency and intensity
• Underlying structure provides a foothold
• Akihary plays bass kalimba and conch shell
• Brouwer plays seven-string classical guitar and analogue synth