Balimaya Project - Calima (2025) [Hi-Res]

"Calima" is a bold new collaboration that creates a powerful encounter between UK Mandé jazz and Afro-Colombian marimba. Fifteen musicians explore shared African roots through rhythm and improvisation, presenting a cross-continental performance of West African jazz and Afro-Colombian tradition in a boundary-pushing exchange of rhythm, heritage, and sound.

The album centres on this international exchange, shaping a new musical narrative in real time. The title, "Calima," refers to the natural phenomenon where Sahara Desert dust travels across the Atlantic, fertilizing the Amazon rainforest. Like this dust, the African diaspora crossed oceans by force, but through cultural resistance kept their heritage alive, creating new forms of expression that transform dispersal into fertile encounters of memory, beauty, and renewal. The album features Balimaya Project and the Discos Pacifico All Stars, which includes members of Bejuco, Semblanzas del Rio Guapi, and former members of Agrupación Changó.

Musicians:

Balimaya Project (UK):
Yahael Camara Onono (MD) – Djembe, Dounounba, Sangban, Kenkeni, Talking Drums, Ewe Set, Vocals, Arrangement and Composition
Godwin Vata Sonzi – Guitar
Asaph Kolakale – Bass guitar/ Additional Composition
Samba Diarra – Fula Flute, Balan, Additional Composition
Elias Jordan Atkinson – Trumpet, Flugelhorn
Gabrielle Pribetti – Tenor Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone
Crispin “Adeegun” Spry – Congas, Bata Ensemble
Jali Bakary Konteh – Kora, Vocals
Jamal Wilson – Keys
Triston Dubison – Drums

Tracklist:
1-1 Balimaya Project;Discos Pacífico Allstars - YO AVIDE AL NIÑO [4:27]
1-2 Balimaya Project;Discos Pacífico Allstars - A LIFE WORTH LIVING [5:23]
1-3 Balimaya Project;Discos Pacífico Allstars - NUESTRO LATIDO [5:59]
1-4 Balimaya Project;Discos Pacífico Allstars - YO TE VI [3:49]
1-5 Balimaya Project;Discos Pacífico Allstars - I WISH I KNEW [6:52]
1-6 Balimaya Project;Discos Pacífico Allstars - A BE TAN DE! [4:57]