Golden Ticket

Indie-rock guitarist Ian Eagleston first became interested in the guitar-driven Kenyan dance music style of benga while visiting Nairobi more than a decade ago. After his fascination transformed the focus of his graduate studies in 2003, he started collaborating with local musicians, including prominent singer-guitarist Otieno Jagwasi and drummer Onyango Wuod Omari. Eagleston brought his compatriot Alex Minoff to East Africa, and the quartet tracked its debut, Ok-Oyot System, as Extra Golden in a single hectic session at a Nairobi nightclub. Though Jagwasi passed away from liver failure before the album's 2006 release, the group has soldiered on with Opiyo Bilongo filling the void.