At this point I’ve listened to enough songs produced by Atta Lenell Otigba to instantly recognize his acoustic touch. And Otigba is all over the new Christian Rock single by Alt-rocker Uchman. Acoustic guitar chords, swelling symphonies that build progressively into a veritable wall of sound, sustained melodies and choruses that are tailored made to fill auditoriums and draw audiences into a near ecstatic trance, the very sound that the big alternative rock bands of the 90’s perfected into a near science.

That in no way means that Uchman is lost in his own song. On the contrary, he is front and centre, singing his heart out, calm at the eye of the storm that swirls around him. Listening to “I love you so” gave me intense nostalgia induced synesthesia, reminding me of why I loved the genre so much as a teenager, how earnest and honest it can be in the hands of the right singer. Alternative rock used to be big in the noughties in Nigeria with artists like 6-foot Plus, Terry Da Rapman and Djinee all building careers from hit songs that either co-opted the genre or utilized its primary sonic elements. It’s refreshing to see it making a small but assured comeback.

Listen to “I Love You So” here.

Get all four songs off Nonso Amadi and Odunsi’s ‘War’ EP here