Alfa will release his debut album, Harmattan, on Saturday, November 15 at the West End Cultural Centre.

The record has been in the works for years, and it is definitely worth the wait.

Throughout the 12 insanely diverse hip hop tracks, the former Magnum KI member is joined by jazz drummer Curtis Nowosad, bassist Julian Bradford, Les Jupes' Michael P Falk (guitar/synths), Royal Canoe's Matt Peters (synth), organist Will Bonness and vocalists Andrina Turenne, Alexa Dirks, Joanna Mojako and Rhonda Thompson. That's a lot of award nominees.

Michael P Falk not only played on the disc, but produced it all and co-wrote many of the tracks. It's being released via his Head in the Sand label.

Live instrumentation on a rap record just makes things better, and Alfa's disc ranks up there with your favourites from The Roots, OutKast and Stetsasonic. It's big, bold and personal.

You can stream the album in its entirety below.

Published in Volume 69, Number 11 of The Uniter (November 12, 2014)