Meet Crystal Axis

Crystal Axis is a Nairobi-based Afropunk band that has established itself as an anti-colonial musical force to be reckoned with. The band comprises Djae Aroni, Ahmed Bulhan, Fox Elijah, and Doug Kihoro and was formed in 2008. Since then, Crystal Axis has managed to amass a large following, establishing themselves as a primary part of the Kenyan alternative music scene on which it has also had a significant impact.

Interestingly, the musicians that make up Crystal Axis did not start as such. In fact, the band members were all initially trained as lawyers before making the switch to music production full time. However, their training in law manages to seep its way into their musicality, lyricism, and ideals in a significant way. Crystal Axis is motivated by the challenge of using their music to combat systemic oppression through their anti-colonial music and loud, spirited, charismatic performances.

Two of the band’s most famous songs directly confront Kenyan politics and history's imperialist and oppressive nature. Drawing on the brutality of the legacy of colonialism and the modern-day Kenyan government, Crystal Axis attempts to awaken people to the system of oppression they live under so that the system itself can be challenged from within. Their 2019 single, Nyayo House, is about the torture chambers used by the Kenyan government to silence dissidents. Their 2018 single, Leopold, is about the many atrocities inflicted on the people of the Congo by King Leopold II of the Belgian monarchy.

A considerable part of the band’s mission is to undo and retell the narratives of Kenyan history that have kept the native people of the land subjugated to oppressive regimes for so long. While their training in law has opened their eyes to the reality of this cyclical oppression of the Kenyan people, they believe that music has the power to catch people’s attention, awaken them to the reality of their situation, and fight back through micro and macro revolutions in their spheres of influence.

The band members strongly believe that the Kenyan people are still living with the historical effects of slavery, racism, colonialism, and oppression and still live with the belief that, as a people, they are unable to innovate and make something of themselves by themselves. Moreover, these strong sentiments are captured in their 2019 single Nyayo House, both lyrically and musically.

While the song’s lyrics speak of the oppressive regime of the Kenyan government, the music is a hardcore blend between grunge and punk, expressing the anger and anguish in the hearts of Kenyan mothers and children while also giving off the feeling of a rallying cry to come together and fight back against oppressive regimes that dehumanize their people for the sake of power. The heavy guitars and drums that carry the song spark fear in the heart of the listeners, yes. However, more than that, they spark something of a newfound energetic resilience, expressing the relentless passion for anti-colonialism at the band’s musical center.