Today Mdou Moctar, the shared name of the man and band, announced a
live-streamed concert broadcast on April 22 at 8 pm via Bandcamp. The
concert was recorded in late 2020 in Niamey, the capital of Niger,
over three nights. Though the group set up outside to record a few
songs with no fanfare, the sound of the band playing quickly
attracted a crowd.
In the sneak peak,
the band playing the title track from their upcoming album Afrique
Victime, you can see the
residents of Niamey letting loose and dancing
up their own dust storm:
We’ve been seeing
Mdou Moctar in clubs and bars in America for years now, long enough
that it feels like the natural setting for his music—really, it
does fit right in. And though Mdou Moctar’s style is descended from
wedding music in his hometown of Agadez—a 15-hour drive from
Niamey—it’s cool to see how a Nigerien crowd reacts to his music.
I’m not saying we should let children into bars when Mdou Moctar’s
playing, I’m just saying they obviously get it.
Tickets for the live stream are $10 and available on Bandcamp now. Preorders are open for Afrique Victime, out May 21 on Matador Records.
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