One Voice

An 11-piece band from the small indigenous community of Baniyala, situated on Blue Mud Bay in the Top End’s Gulf of Carpentaria, Garrangali means ‘home of the saltwater crocodile Baru’ in Yolngu. While their self-titled 2010 debut album showed promise, a decade-plus later their long-delayed follow-up presents a more mature and confident band, with assured vocals, a solid back-beat, pulsing didgeridoo (yidaki), a touch of flute and tight musicianship.

Their remote region in Arnhem Land became well-known in 2008 when the High Court of Australia ruled that their community had associated land rights over intertidal waters, and could issue permits for its use, meaning traditional Aboriginal owners control access to around 85% of the Northern Territory coastline. The band’s ‘Sea Rights’ celebrates this landmark case. Elsewhere the band cranks out their distinct brand of saltwater ska on ‘Tongues of the Fire’, ‘Mirri’ and ‘Five Songlines Remix’. There are also three short manikay (traditional songs), featuring voice, yidaki and bilma (clapsticks). Breaking the sometimes overly-simplistic rock-reggae mould of other Arnhem bands, Garrangali’s wider stylistic mix hits the right notes.