The Gardens, Najjera, keeping rock music alive

I first encountered rock music in the dark alleys of Wandegeya. It was alien music to me. I had never heard such a sound. Electric. Raw. Hard-hitting. It came to me lugging a guitar and a seductive grin. It was tatted. I was learning books at Makerere University, a fresh-faced young boy from Kazo. And I still remember it like it was a fortnight ago.

There we were. Sleep-deprived but singing our voices hoarse in the defunct Steak Out Bar. We were hanging with 3 Doors Down and Green Day. U2 was blazing heavy, giving us beautiful days. We made sacrifices with Creed. Someday, Nickelback came visiting and Shinedown gave us a second chance. Fuel pumped us forward and added Red Hot Chilli Peppers on the menu. It was a phase that will forever be etched in my memory.

We rocked. We danced. One day, the music stopped. Gone. Silence. Steak Out closed and rock music was homeless. However, Touch FM kept the fire burning until the radio was turned off. But thankfully, many years later, the visionary founders of The Gardens, Najjera, reinvigorated the energy. They gave rock music a home and a pillow.

The Gardens, Najjera, is now home to The Script and Puddle of Mudd. Kings of Leon brave the Najjera roads every Thursday. It’s now a gathering of rock fanatics looking for the lost spark. A tribe of rock lovers speaking one language; rocking and rolling back the years. Every Thursday, The Gardens, Najjera turns into a massive rock extravaganza. With Phil Kirya behind the decks, a guest DJ waiting in the queue, Thursdays have never been the same again.

After crunching numbers at work, endless presentations in the boardroom, bantering strangers on social media, wrestling capitalism, leapfrogging interesting roads, turn the nose of your car to The Gardens, Najjera, and let rock music take control.