Ahead of playing more tour dates behind last year's acclaimed Afrique Victime, Mdou Moctar has delivered a new EP. The six-song Niger EP Vol. 1 can be heard in the players below.
All six tracks of Niger EP Vol. 1 were captured in the guitarist's native country. They include previously unreleased "drum machine" versions of "Imouhar" and "Chismiten," and live versions of songs from across Moctar's discography.
Producer and bass player Mikey Coltun shared in a release that there are more Niger EPs to come:
In 2021, we started the Mdou Moctar mixtape series. These releases compiled field recordings, cell phone voice memos, interview clips, conversations captured in the tour van, and blown-out board recordings from shows all over the world. As a continuation of those mixtapes, we present the Niger EPs, which examine the roots of the Mdou Moctar band. Early Mdou recordings were contained on cassettes, though the humble tape was soon replaced by the quick and easy facility of cell phone technology. Long bus rides are common in West Africa. On one of these rides, you might be seated next to a stranger and ask, "What are you listening to?" Then a song exchange would begin over Bluetooth. This is a very real way artists found their music distributed far from home. In that vein, the Niger EP series features solely recordings taped in Mdou Moctar's home country of Niger. Volume 1 [begins] the series with a mix of recordings from 2017-2020, documenting the band at weddings, picnics, rehearsals, and even impromptu house concerts.
After playing Montreal and Toronto earlier this year, Mdou Moctar's second run of North American dates beings tonight in Portland, with a lone Canadian stop coming August 25 at Vancouver's Rickshaw Theatre. You can find the complete itinerary below.
Read Exclaim!'s review of Afrique Victime. The album was named one of Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2021, while its title track was among the 30 Best Songs of 2021.
Mdou Moctar 2022 Tour Dates:
08/24 Portland, OR - Revolution Hall
08/25 Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw Theatre
08/26 Port Townsend, WA - THING Festival
08/27 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
08/27-28 Pasadena, CA - This Ain't No Picnic
08/31 Pioneertown, CA - Pappy & Harriet's
09/01 Tucson, AZ - Hoco Festival
09/03 Nelsonville, OH - Nelsonville Music Festival
All six tracks of Niger EP Vol. 1 were captured in the guitarist's native country. They include previously unreleased "drum machine" versions of "Imouhar" and "Chismiten," and live versions of songs from across Moctar's discography.
Producer and bass player Mikey Coltun shared in a release that there are more Niger EPs to come:
In 2021, we started the Mdou Moctar mixtape series. These releases compiled field recordings, cell phone voice memos, interview clips, conversations captured in the tour van, and blown-out board recordings from shows all over the world. As a continuation of those mixtapes, we present the Niger EPs, which examine the roots of the Mdou Moctar band. Early Mdou recordings were contained on cassettes, though the humble tape was soon replaced by the quick and easy facility of cell phone technology. Long bus rides are common in West Africa. On one of these rides, you might be seated next to a stranger and ask, "What are you listening to?" Then a song exchange would begin over Bluetooth. This is a very real way artists found their music distributed far from home. In that vein, the Niger EP series features solely recordings taped in Mdou Moctar's home country of Niger. Volume 1 [begins] the series with a mix of recordings from 2017-2020, documenting the band at weddings, picnics, rehearsals, and even impromptu house concerts.
After playing Montreal and Toronto earlier this year, Mdou Moctar's second run of North American dates beings tonight in Portland, with a lone Canadian stop coming August 25 at Vancouver's Rickshaw Theatre. You can find the complete itinerary below.
Read Exclaim!'s review of Afrique Victime. The album was named one of Exclaim!'s 50 Best Albums of 2021, while its title track was among the 30 Best Songs of 2021.
Mdou Moctar 2022 Tour Dates:
08/24 Portland, OR - Revolution Hall
08/25 Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw Theatre
08/26 Port Townsend, WA - THING Festival
08/27 San Francisco, CA - The Fillmore
08/27-28 Pasadena, CA - This Ain't No Picnic
08/31 Pioneertown, CA - Pappy & Harriet's
09/01 Tucson, AZ - Hoco Festival
09/03 Nelsonville, OH - Nelsonville Music Festival
