The Tuareg guitarist takes us behind the scenes of his album in a 10-minute short film, shot in Niger.
Afrique Victime, by Mdou Moctar, has been one of the defining albums of the year so far. Championed by Chris Kirkley via his label Sahel Sounds, the Nigerien luminary has finally reached the top with his most recent record, published on the highly respected Matador Records. On its nine tracks, the project revels in a true fusion of rock and Tuareg poetry, evoking love, women’s emancipation, injustice, religion and West-African colonial exploitation, all tinged with a touch of 70s rock. A few months following the release, the artist has released a ten-minute documentary on the creative process behind the album, involving Ahmoudou Madassane, Souleymane Ibrahim and Mikey Coltun.
The short film also discusses the political circumstances that accompanied the artists in their creation. Moctar himself cited the situation in Niger as inspiration for Afrique Victime in PAM’s French interview with him: “Many things are getting worse and it’s accelerating. Today, there are armed terrorists on motorbikes who are robbing people. A few weeks ago, they killed 213 people in villages, including young children, women, elderly people… […] I can’t say all that in a song, that’s why I’m looking for the kind of interview we have together today to get these messages across, that’s what pushed me to make this album.”
Afrique Victime by Mdou Moctar is available on Matador Records.
