Local chutney band El Sadiek and the Sugar Cake Girls recently completed production of its first CD titled ‘Stupidy’ and it will be officially launched this weekend.
This CD, which has eight tracks, was produced at the band’s recording studio at Friendship, East Bank Demerara.
Band leader John Alli, who is also the album’s producer, told Stabroek News that he started putting together the tracks for the album about a year ago. He himself has two CDs.
The tracks on the CD are a mix of chutney, filmi and Guyanese folk music and include ‘Bassidy’, ‘Bam Bam Bolaray’, ‘Pyar’ and ‘Viagra’. One of the tracks, ‘Abba de Witch’, is an earlier work of John Alli which was remixed. The band hopes to produce music videos of most of the tracks.
Alli said that the band has been on two promotional tours to Suriname and Trinidad. After the launching of this CD, the band plans tours to North America and Europe.
The band will officially launch the CD at Whim Ground, Corentyne today and at the Bath Settlement Ground tomorrow. And on May 10 the band will be at the Diamond Community Ground while the following day the action will be at the Starlite Drive-in Ground.
Alli said that the new CD will be on sale at all of these events for $1,000. Cassettes will cost $500 each. The album, Alli said, will be available for sale at leading record stores from this week. About 5,000 copies of the CD have been produced for sale.
The band leader said that the studio, at which CDs can be recorded for $3,000 per hour, is available to local performers regardless of the type of music.
He noted too that the facility is a 24-track digital studio which is able to record mixed or mastered music.
According to the band’s manager, Arvind Raghoenath, the album cover which features six of the band members was sponsored by Red Square, a beverage marketed by Demerara Distillers Limited.
Stabroek News ‘test drove’ the new CD and thought it to be cleanly and professionally recorded. As for the music, however, persons can form their own opinion after listening to ‘Stupidy’. (Johann Earle)