Tuareg bands – 7th Level Music

Tinariwen release lovely new single, “Ken Alghalm,” from their new album due May 19, 2023.

Tinariwen—the legendary GRAMMY-winning Tuareg collective—present their new single, “Kek Alghalm,” from their forthcoming album, Amatssou, out May 19th on Wedge. Following lead single “Tenere Den,” an “understated tribute to the desert and to the Tuareg revolution in the highlands of Mali” (WNYC), “Kek Alghalm” opens Amatssou as a call to the Tuareg tribes to unite against present threats, its lyrics calling out complicity in silence: “So where are the Touareg? // And why do they remain silent // In the face of so much disrespect // Perpetrated shamelessly with uncovered face.” Featuring Nashville’s Wes Corbett on banjo, “Kek Alghalm” is a longtime live favorite amongst Tinariwen fans and it’s presented here in its recorded form for the first time.

Watch Video for “Kek Alghalm” by Tinariwen

Tinariwen, composed of founding members Ibrahim Ag Alhabib, Touhami Ag Alhassane and Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni, plus bassist Eyadou Ag Leche, percussionist Said Ag Ayad and guitarist Elaga Ag Hamid, single-handedly invented a guitar style that has captured the world’s imagination. They call it ishumar or assouf (“nostalgia” in Tamashek) but the rest of the world has come to know it as the Tuareg or desert blues. It is music that is imbued with sorrow and longing but it’s also music to dance to, to forget our cares.

Throughout Amatssou, the band’s ninth studio album, they set out to explore the shared sensibilities between their trademark desert blues and the vibrant country music of rural America. Recorded in Djanet, an oasis in the desert of southern Algeria located in Tassili N’Ajjer National Park, with additional production by Daniel Lanois (Brian Eno, U2, Bob Dylan, Emmylou Harris, Peter Gabriel, Willie Nelson), Amatssou finds Tinariwen’s signature snaking guitar lines and hypnotic grooves seamlessly co-existing alongside banjos, fiddles and pedal steel. Lanois’ haunting pedal steel and crystalline production add a soaring ambience to Tinariwen’s trance-like desert blues.

For decades, Tinariwen have remained ambassadors for the Tuareg people, a way of life in tune with the natural world, which is under threat as never before. Amatssou is Tamashek for “Beyond The Fear,” and it fits, as Tinariwen have always been characterized by their fearlessness. Though Tuareg culture is as old as that of ancient Greece or Rome, the songs of Amatssou speak to the current and often tough reality of Tuareg life today. Unsurprisingly, there are impassioned references to Mali’s ongoing political and social turmoil. Full of poetic allegory, the lyrics call for unity and freedom. There are songs of struggle and resistance with oblique references to the recent desperate political upheavals in Mali and the increasing power of the Salafists. Tinariwen’s message has never sounded more urgent and compelling than it does on Amatssou.

Beginning May 27th at Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music, Tinariwen’s US tour will see them bringing their cherished songs to cities including New York, Los Angeles, and more before they head overseas for a run of EU/UK dates. All shows are on-sale now with tickets available here.

Watch “Tenere Den” Video

Pre-order Amatssou by Tinariwen

Tinariwen Tour Dates
Sat. May 27 – Chicago, IL @ Old Town School of Folk Music
Tue. May 30 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
Wed. May 31 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox
Fri. June 2 – Berkeley, CA @ UC Theater
Sat. June 3 – Los Angeles, CA @ Fonda Theater
Mon. June 5 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
Tue. June 6 – Boston, MA @ Sinclair
Wed. June 7 – Washington, DC @ Lincoln Theatre
Sat. June 10 – Hilvarenbeek, NL @ Best Kept Secret Festival
Mon. June 12 – Rubigen, CH @ Muhle Hunziken
Wed. June 14 – Florence, IT @Ultravox
Thu. June 15 – Milan, IT @ Triennale Garden
Fri. June 16 – Turin, IT @ Hiroshima Mon Amour
Sun. June 18 – Dublin, IE @ Body & Soul Festival
Thu. June 22 – Berlin, DE @ Festsaal Kreuzberg
Sat. June 24 – Glastonbury, UK @ Glastonbury Festival
Mon. 26 – Lille, FR @ Splendid
Wed. June 28 – Paris, FR @ Salle Pleyel
Thu. June 29 – Brussels, BE @ Ancienne Belgique
Sat. July 1 – Roskilde, DK @ Roskilde Festival
Sun. July 2 – Stockholm, SE @ Slaktkyran
Tue. July 4 – Oslo, NO @ Rockefeller
Fri. July 7 – Bilbao, ES @ BBK Live Festival
Tue. July 11 – Arles, FR @ Les Suds Arles
Thu. July 13 – London, UK @ Somerset House
Sat. July 15 – Bristol, UK @ SWX
Mon. July 17 – Glasgow, UK @ St Lukes
Wed. July 19 – Birmingham, UK @ Institute 2
Sat. July 22 – Cheshire, UK @ Bluedot Festival
Tue. 25 – Vigo, SP @ Terraceo Festival
Thu. July 27 – Sines, PT @ FMM
Sat. July 29 – Luxey, FR @ Musicalarue Festival

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Yuri at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Rewind Review: Tinariwen – Emmaar (2014)

In case you hadn’t noticed, I’ve been on a Tinariwen kick this month.

Emmaar is an album they released in 2014 and was recorded in a different desert than they one in which they live and sing about in Algeria. Emmaar was recorded in Joshua Tree, California in the spring of 2013. They were amid cacti, mountain flowers, horses, a different kind of heat, cowboy culture, and probably a bunch of hippy Californians. They were far from their homeland, which might’ve fueled the songs on Emmaar (The Heat on the Breeze) – as they are about the Tuareg people and their struggles and the peace of their home desert. One can’t help but wonder if Tinariwen saw Southwestern Native Americans as their own desert nomads and felt kinship with them.

After all, the opening track is “Toumast Tincha” (“The People Have Been Sold Out”), and the album’s first lyrics translate to “The ideals of the people have been sold out, my friends. Any peace imposed by force is bound to fail and give way to hatred.” Add sizzling guitars to that kind of piercing imagery and you get a powerful track. “Chaghaybou” is a song about a man who reflects the proud spirit of the Tuareg people.

“Arhegh Danagh” (“I Want to Tell”) is a great example of the “desert blues” Tinariwen play so well. It blends haunting guitar sounds and hand percussion with deep Delta blues lyrics like “Today’s love is like a mirage. The closer you get, the further away it goes. It’s been ten years since love left me, since it deserted my soul and no longer crosses my path…” I mean, Howlin’ Wolf sang stuff like that every night. “Timadrit in Sahara” (“Youth in Sahara”) is a call to action of the Tuareg kids to challenge the world. In reverse, “Imidiwan Ahi Sigdim” (“Friends, Hear me”) is a call to the band’s own generation to remember those who sacrificed before them but also to not get trapped in the past and old ways of thinking that destroyed so many.

“Tahalamot” is a beautiful song about a woman so beautiful that the singer puts on his best robes and musk and brings out his best saddle to ride to her like a nobleman. The droning bass and snappy guitar exude the man’s confidence and determination to see her again and win her heart. “Sendad Eghlalan” (“This Constant Lethargy”) is another call for the Tuareg men to snap out of being “engrossed and seduced by a world that’s forever advancing.” It’s interesting to note that women are included in this cry, as they’ve already figured out all this and are able to see through the illusions far easier than us stubborn dudes.

“Imidiwanin Ahi Tifhamam” (“Friends, Understand Me!”) is a song about love that has come and gone, but there are no regrets – only fond memories and lessons taken to heart. “Koud Edhaz Emin” (“Even if I Seem to Smile”) has the singer putting on a brave face as he watches so many of his brothers suffering from oppression, illusions they willfully embrace, and the pursuit of materialistic pleasures while they have far better things like Tuareg songs and music to enjoy. “Emajer” is delightfully playful, and the closer, “Aghregh Medin” (“I Call on Man”), a call for unity, is like a mantra.

It’s another beautiful record by Tinariwen, among their many others, and the blend of African and U.S. desert culture is a powerful incense you’ll want to float around you for a long while.

Keep your mind open.

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Review: Tinariwen – Imidiwan: Companions (2022 reissue)

Tinariwen‘s fourth album, Imidiwan: Companions sends you into a hypnotic desert landscape from the first notes of the opener, “Imidiwan Afrik Temdam.” The simple, yet haunting guitar, the handclap percussion, and the group vocals during the chorus instantly are uplifting.

The whole album is like that (as is pretty much every Tinariwen record). “Lulla” will get you and everyone around you dancing. The heavy guitar chords of “Tenhert” would make Johnny Cash smile. “Tamodjerazt Assis” has a cool psychedelic rhythm that will make your head sway like its turned into a willow tree in a soft wind.

The chant-like vocals of “Imazeghen N Adagh” are almost as hypnotizing as the dust devil guitar chords and unhurried hand percussion. “Assuf Ag Assuf” moves like smoke. “Ere Tasfata Adouina” is perfect for a ride through the desert with no particular agenda or destination with its dreamy guitar licks and relaxed, but soulful vocals. The album closes with “Desert Wind,” a slightly eerie instrumental of simple guitar and synth loops that creates a mind-warping effect.

Tinariwen were making a lot of international waves when this album originally came out in 2009, and its reissue is a welcome treat for fans of Tuareg music, desert rock, and the band’s early career.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Sam at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Review: Tinariwen – Kel Tinariwen (2022 reissue)

Recorded in 1991 and released only on a minuscule run of cassettes, Tinariwen‘s Kel Tinariwen is a fascinating timepiece of their early sound and the building blocks of what would become the desert blues style the band that would make the band famous around the world.

Opening with a song about history, “À L’Histoire,” you hear bits of late 80s Afropop and synth music mixed with their traditional style Tuareg vocals (with female co-vocals sung in French!). “Kedou Kedou” brings in what would become their familiar, hypnotic guitar sound, and the mesmerizing sounds only increase on “Atahoura Techragh D’Azaka Nin.”

“Matadjem Yinmexan” is bouncy and lively. You’ll hear how much Tinariwen have influenced Goat on this track. “Awa Idjan War Infa Iman” puts together simple synth-strings and trance-inducing vocals and guitar rhythms. “Sendad Eghlalan” has a brightness to it that is difficult to explain until you hear it. It’s probably from the shopping mall-organ riffs and beats.

The trippy, haunting melodies of “Tenidagh High Djeredjere” are like an appetizer for the main course of the album’s closer, “Arghane Manine,” which is full of electric dance beats, hand percussion, and a simple, repetitive guitar lick that perfectly matches with the Tuareg vocals and chants.

I don’t know if members of Tinariwen thought this album would be a massive success, or if they were just happy with being able to make it, put it out there, and spread the stories of the Tuareg people. Thankfully, they decided to re-release it for all of us on a wide scale for the first time so we can hear these old stories and get lost in them.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Sam at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Review: Imarhan – Aboogi

Named after a studio space they built in Tamanrasset, Algeria, Imarhan‘s new album, Aboogi, instantly transports you to a different world where everything slows down, the tea is delicious, and you spend nights listening to music and dancing around a fire now and then.

Opener “Achinkad” sets this tone right away with its simple guitar chords, hand percussion and claps, and meditative vocals. “Derhan” builds on this theme of communal bliss. “Temet” (not to be confused with their 2018 album of the same name) is a haunting warm wind as the sun comes up on a desert cooled overnight. “Tindjatan” is a tale of a great battle in which many Tuaregs were killed. “Asof” is nothing but vocals, simple hand percussion, and guitar chords that drift into windswept dunes, and it’s lovely.

“Assossam” spins a tale of economic disparity in southern Algeria, all the while keeping some optimism with its beats and lively guitar work. The lyrics of “Taghadart” are ones of grief, but hope within that grief (i.e., “Please safeguard my trust from now until the end of time.”). “Laouni” is like a lazy stroll along the crest of a desert hill. It flows so well into “Imaslan N’Assouf” that it’s almost hypnotizing. I don’t have a translation of the lyrics for “Tamiditin,” but the guitar and vocal delivery on it makes it sound like Tuareg blues. The album ends with “Adar Newlan,” a song about the increase in youth imprisonment rates in the band’s native land and how these sentences affect families and communities.

Aboogi is a powerful record in its peaceful delivery. Imarhan have every right to rage and shred, but they decide to deliver prayers and meditations instead.

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Yuri at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Imarhan and Super Furry Animals’ Gruff Rhys team up for “Adar Newlan.”

Today, Tuareg quintet Imarhan releases “Adar Newlan,” a collaboration with Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals and the third single off of their third studio album, Aboogi, out Friday, January 28 on City Slang. Imarhan and Rhys wrote and recorded the song together at Aboogi Studio, the band’s studio in Tamanrasset, Algeria. Sung in the musicians’ native languages of Tamasheq and Welsh, the song is about the universal value of kinship and more specifically highlights the struggles of the young people of Tamanrasset. The video for “Adar Newlan” was directed, written, and animated by Hugo and Rodolphe Jouxtel of Fantômes and produced by Ondine Benetier for La Blogothèque and Wedge. The song follows two previous singles, “Tamiditin (feat. Japonais)” and “Achinkad.”

Imarhan first met Rhys in London at an Africa Express event, organized by Damon Albarn. Rhys elaborates on their collaboration: “My time at Aboogi with Imarhan was unforgettable. We hid from the sun and drank hot strong tea in the orange tent within the studio’s outdoor compound and exchanged musical ideas. New friends singing in multiple languages; Tamasheq, Welsh, French, English, Arabic drifted on the air from the studio door into the yard. Songs seemed to flow and grow quickly and effortlessly in these conditions. Right where the city meets the mountains, and where you can glimpse both worlds, capped by the ceiling of their gigantic sky – without barely moving your head.“

The video depicts a man coming to listen to a group of Tuaregs who recall the legendary struggles of their ancestors as they sit by the fireside. Time passing has transformed the history into tales and legends, spawning many versions as tea is prepared. Story telling becomes dialogue and dialogue becomes lively debate. Imarhan says, “As we delve into their contrasting imaginations, the truth seems to slip like sand between our fingers…finally giving way to a common story, enriched by sharing and begging to be reinterpreted, again and again.”

Watch Imarhan’s “Adar Newlan”

Imarhan built Aboogi Studio themselves so that they could finally record on their home soil and provide the same resources to other artists in the Tamanrasset area. On the region, Rhys said, “A simple four meter walk to the studio then to document these ideas live and in the moment – [it was] the perfect way to record. To get to visit Tamanrasset in the first place, to receive the warmest welcome possible and to travel into the desert and witness all its beautiful glory by day and its infinite stars at night was life changing enough in itself, but that’s an entirely different story!” It seemed only natural to also call the resulting collection of songs Aboogi, a nod to the new collective space Imarhan created, as well as the historic resilience of their culture and people.

Aboogi also features collaborations with Sudanese singer Sulafa Elyas and Tinariwen’s Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni, solidifying Imarhan as a truly global group, united with their collaborators in a spirit of resistance and societal change. Following Imarhan’s exhilarating 2018 album Temet, Aboogi’s featherweight, festive music belies the band’s fierce sense of conviction and justice. These are the complexities that make Imarhan’s music so prescient – beauty and tranquility intermingle with strife and heartache, creating a dynamic view of life for those subjugated by over a century of colonialism and lopsided revolutions but blessed with extraordinary community, art and culture.

Imarhan are: Iyad Moussa Ben Abderahmane (aka Sadam), Tahar Khaldi, Hicham Bouhasse, Haiballah Akhamouk and Abdelkader Ourzig.
Watch Video for “Achinkad”

Listen to “Tamiditin (feat. Japonais)”

Pre-order Aboogi

Imarhan Tour Dates
Wed. Mar. 9, 2022 – Rennes, FR @ Théâtre L’Aire Libre
Thu. Mar. 10, 2022 – Tourcoing, FR @ Grand Mix
Sat. Mar. 12, 2022 – Brighton, UK @ Green Door Store
Sun. Mar. 13, 2022 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club
Mon. Mar. 14, 2022 – Manchester, UK @ YES (Pink Room)
Tue. Mar. 15, 2022 – Bristol, UK @ Exchange
Thu. Mar. 17, 2022 – London, UK @ The Dome
Fri. Mar. 18, 2022 – Gent, BE @ De Centrale
Sat. Mar. 19, 2022 – Haarlem, NL @ Patronaat
Sun. Mar. 20, 2022 – Brussels, BE @ AB-club
Mon. Mar. 21, 2022 – Den Haag, NL @ Paard
Wed. Mar. 23, 2022 – Copenhagen, DK @ Alice
Thu. Mar. 24, 2022 – Berlin, DE @ Badehaus
Fri. Mar. 25, 2022 – Erfurt, DE @ Franz Mehlhose
Sun. Mar. 27, 2022 – Genève, CH @ PTR L’Usine
Tue. Mar. 29, 2022 – Lyon, FR @ Ninkasi
Wed. Mar. 30, 2022 – Paris, FR @ La Gaité Lyrique
Thu. Mar. 31, 2022 – Rouen, FR @ Le 106 Club
Fri. Apr. 1, 2022 – Orléans, FR @ Astrolobe
Sat. Apr. 2, 2022 – Toulouse, FR @ Le Connexion
Mon. Apr. 4, 2022 – Valencia, ES @ 16 Toneladas
Tue. Apr. 5, 2022 – Madrid, ES @ Clamores
Thu. Apr. 7, 2022 – Braga, PT @ Teatro Circo
Fri. Apr. 8, 2022 – Lisbon, PT @ Music Box
Sat. Apr. 9, 2022 – Sevilla, ES @ Sala X
Sun. Apr. 10, 2022 – Alicante, ES @ Alacant
Mon. Apr. 11, 2022 – Barcelona, ES @ La Nau
Tues. Apr. 12, 2022 – Istres, FR @ L’Usine

[Don’t forget to subscribe before you go.]

[Thanks to Yuri at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Imarhan release new single featuring Tuareg legend Japonais.

Today, Tuareg quintet Imarhan unveil “Tamiditin (feat. Japonais)” off of their third studio album, Aboogi, out January 28th, 2022 on City Slang. Japonais, aka the late poet Mohamed Ag Itlale, was a pillar of the Tuareg community who passed away shortly after these recordings were made. The album was recorded in Aboogi Studio, the first professional recording studio in Tamanrasset, built by Imarhan themselves.

Bandleader Iyad Moussa Ben Abderahmane, aka Sadam, said, “Japonais passing has left a big void in Tuareg music. It was enough to exist in the same precious time as his poetry and music but to have recorded with him at Aboogi Studio was so special. He was an exceptional artist and personality. He listened to everyone, never critical, encouraging younger generations because he felt change is important in music. When I met him by chance, it felt like magic. He knew about Imarhan and wanted us to sing his songs because he didn’t have the strength and trusted us to carry his music on. His progressive mind and positive energy will always be part of our community and in our hearts.”
Listen to “Tamiditin (feat. Japonais)”

Aboogi also features collaborations with Sudanese singer Sulafa Elyas and Super Furry Animals’ Gruff Rhys, plus Tinariwen’s Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni, solidifying Imarhan as a truly global group, united with their collaborators in a spirit of resistance and societal change. Following Imarhan’s exhilarating 2018 album Temet, Aboogi is as serene and open as the desert it emerged from. The featherweight, festive music on Aboogi belies the band’s fierce sense of conviction and justice. These are the complexities that make Imarhan’s music so prescient – beauty and tranquility intermingle with strife and heartache, creating a dynamic view of life for those subjugated by over a century of colonialism and lopsided revolutions but blessed with extraordinary community, art and culture.

This new album is the first the band recorded on their native soil, and in a studio they built. It seemed only natural to also call the resulting collection of songs Aboogi, a nod to the new collective space they created, as well as the historic resilience of their culture and people.

Next spring, Imarhan will embark on a European tour. Full dates are listed below, and US tour dates are forthcoming.
Watch Imarhan’s Video for “Achinkad”

Pre-order Aboogi

Imarhan Tour Dates
Wed. Mar. 9, 2022 – Rennes, FR @ Théâtre L’Aire Libre
Thu. Mar. 10, 2022 – Tourcoing, FR @ Grand Mix
Sat. Mar. 12, 2022 – Brighton, UK @ Green Door Store
Sun. Mar. 13, 2022 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club
Mon. Mar. 14, 2022 – Manchester, UK @ YES (Pink Room)
Tue. Mar. 15, 2022 – Bristol, UK @ Exchange
Thu. Mar. 17, 2022 – London, UK @ The Dome
Fri. Mar. 18, 2022 – Gent, BE @ De Centrale
Sat. Mar. 19, 2022 – Haarlem, NL @ Patronaat
Sun. Mar. 20, 2022 – Brussels, BE @ AB-club
Mon. Mar. 21, 2022 – Den Haag, NL @ Paard
Wed. Mar. 23, 2022 – Copenhagen, DK @ Alice
Thu. Mar. 24, 2022 – Berlin, DE @ Badehaus
Fri. Mar. 25, 2022 – Erfurt, DE @ Franz Mehlhose
Sun. Mar. 27, 2022 – Genève, CH @ PTR L’Usine
Tue. Mar. 29, 2022 – Lyon, FR @ Ninkasi
Wed. Mar. 30, 2022 – Paris, FR @ La Gaité Lyrique
Thu. Mar. 31, 2022 – Rouen, FR @ Le 106 Club
Fri. Apr. 1, 2022 – Orléans, FR @ Astrolobe
Sat. Apr. 2, 2022 – Toulouse, FR @ Le Connexion
Mon. Apr. 4, 2022 – Valencia, ES @ 16 Toneladas
Tue. Apr. 5, 2022 – Madrid, ES @ Clamores
Thu. Apr. 7, 2022 – Braga, PT @ Teatro Circo
Fri. Apr. 8, 2022 – Lisbon, PT @ Music Box
Sat. Apr. 9, 2022 – Sevilla, ES @ Sala X
Sun. Apr. 10, 2022 – Alicante, ES @ Alacant
Mon. Apr. 11, 2022 – Barcelona, ES @ La Nau

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Yuri at Pitch Perfect PR.]

Imarhan announce new album to start off 2022.

Tuareg quintet Imarhan announce their third studio album, Aboogi, out January 28th, 2022 on City Slang, and today presents the lead single/video “Achinkad.” The diversity, beauty, and struggles of life in Imarhan’s home city of Tamanrasset in Southern Algeria are reflected in the songs on Aboogi, the first album the band recorded on their native soil in a studio they built themselves. It features Sudanese singer Sulafa Elyas and Super Furry Animals’ Gruff Rhys, plus Tinariwen’s Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni and the poet Mohamed Ag Itlale (also known as Japonais) from the Tamanrasset artistic community. Following the exhilarating Temet (2018, City Slang), this new album is as serene and open as the desert it emerged from.

Imarhan’s Aboogi Studio, named for the structures their nomadic forebears built when establishing settlements, is the first professional recording studio in their city, meant to serve the Saharan region’s community of musicians, many who’ve never had access to high-end recording gear before. It seemed only natural to also call the resulting collection of songs Aboogi, a nod to the new collective space they had established, as well as the resilience of their culture and people. “Aboogi reflects the colors of Tamanrasset, what we experience in everyday life,” says bandleader Iyad Moussa Ben Abderahmane, aka Sadam. “We give space to the wind and the natural energies, to the sun and the sand. We want to express their colors through music.” There is incredible warmth embedded in these steady, lilting rhythms and patiently strummed acoustic guitars, derived not just from the natural environment but from the community that surrounds them.

Imarhan’s musical world has always been expansive, based in the traditional sounds of the Tuareg people but fiercely individualistic and embracing of the many styles they encounter. On Aboogi they emerge as a truly global group, united with their collaborators in a spirit of resistance and social change. This connection is sensed in today’s “Achinkad” video, which shows the band playing music around a fire and dancers shuffling throughout a desert.

Of the song, Sadam says, “It’s a tribute to our people and to our land. The Tuaregs have been present since ancient times and they are still here, present to their land, faithful to their people, grateful to their ancestors, to their culture, and fully, heavily attached to their nature. They travel through the times and they are always here with this land part of their identity.”

Watch Imarhan’s Video for “Achinkad”

The songs on Aboogi are of-today, bridging the past, often referencing ancestral texts, and the future. They address many current issues affecting Imarhan’s community, from oppressive laws to great economic disparities. “You must be in solidarity with your people at all costs, until the end,” says Sadam. The featherweight, festive music on Aboogi belies its fierce sense of conviction and justice. These complexities are what make Imarhan’s music so prescient – beauty and tranquility intermingle with strife and heartache, creating a dynamic view of life for those subjugated by over a century of colonialism and lopsided revolutions but blessed with true community, art, and culture.

Imarhan’s confirmed tour dates in Europe are listed below. Tour dates are forthcoming for the United States.
Pre-order Aboogi

Aboogi Tracklist
1. Achinkad
2. Derhan
3. Temet
4. Tindjatan
5. Asof
6. Assossam
7. Taghadart
8. Laouni
9. Imaslan N’Assouf
10. Tamiditin
11. Adar Newlan

Imarhan Tour Dates
Wed. Mar. 9, 2022 – Rennes, FR @ Théâtre L’Aire Libre
Thu. Mar. 10, 2022 – Tourcoing, FR @ Grand Mix
Sat. Mar. 12, 2022 – Brighton, UK @ Green Door Store
Sun. Mar. 13, 2022 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club
Mon. Mar. 14, 2022 – Manchester, UK @ YES (Pink Room)
Tue. Mar. 15, 2022 – Bristol, UK @ Exchange
Thu. Mar. 17, 2022 – London, UK @ The Dome
Fri. Mar. 18, 2022 – Gent, BE @ De Centrale
Sat. Mar. 19, 2022 – Haarlem, NL @ Patronaat
Sun. Mar. 20, 2022 – Brussels, BE @ AB-club
Mon. Mar. 21, 2022 – Den Haag, NL @ Paard
Wed. Mar. 23, 2022 – Copenhagen, DK @ Alice
Thu. Mar. 24, 2022 – Berlin, DE @ Badehaus
Fri. Mar. 25, 2022 – Erfurt, DE @ Franz Mehlhose
Sun. Mar. 27, 2022 – Genève, CH @ PTR L’Usine
Tue. Mar. 29, 2022 – Lyon, FR @ Ninkasi
Wed. Mar. 30, 2022 – Paris, FR @ La Gaité Lyrique
Thu. Mar. 31, 2022 – Rouen, FR @ Le 106 Club
Fri. Apr. 1, 2022 – Orléans, FR @ Astrolobe
Sat. Apr. 2, 2022 – Toulouse, FR @ Le Connexion
Mon. Apr. 4, 2022 – Valencia, ES @ 16 Toneladas
Tue. Apr. 5, 2022 – Madrid, ES @ Clamores
Thu. Apr. 7, 2022 – Braga, PT @ Teatro Circo
Fri. Apr. 8, 2022 – Lisbon, PT @ Music Box
Sat. Apr. 9, 2022 – Sevilla, ES @ Sala X
Sun. Apr. 10, 2022 – Alicante, ES @ Alacant
Mon. Apr. 11, 2022 – Barcelona, ES @ La Nau

Keep your mind open.

[Don’t forget to subscribe before you go.]

[Thanks to Yuri at Pitch Perfect PR.]