Mdou Moctar’s Tuareg rock hits the road

The Tuareg rock stars signed to Sahel Sounds announce an international tour via a live video from the banks of the Niger river beginning in North America this February.

Mdou Moctar is once again packing his gear and bringing Saharan rock around the world from the rural desert village of Agadez, Niger. Beginning with a homemade guitar and an affinity for Eddie Van Halen clips, Mdou Moctar is known as a shining star of African guitar, blending Tuareg melodies with the distortion of hard rock for a powerful and loud music with a political bent. The group’s last album Afrique Victime, accompanied by a short documentary, was a brutal condemnation of terrorism, neo-colonialism, and commercial forces that continue to vistimise the African continent.

Mdou Moctar – “Live at the Niger River”

“I wrote Afrique Victime to be able to express myself to journalists, and to be able to complete my message, because I can’t say everything in the piece.” Mdou said during PAM’s last interview.

With 45 stops across Europe and North America, Mdou will have another chance to speak truth to power about the situation he condemns in his homeland. It will also be an exciting chance to catch the virtuoso in action, shredding with a ferocity steeped in heritage and frustration of a pillaged home.

Speaking of his travels, Mdou remarks that his people, “tell me that they are very happy to see me go abroad to represent our culture. I am a kind of ambassador for them. But I don’t limit myself to my village, I also like to look around when I travel. I look at how people live or survive. If they have water problems for example, I try to do something to help them…”

Ears are wide open for the Tuareg maestro and the stage is set for Mdou Moctar to spread his message.

The announcement is accompanied with a beautiful video shot on the banks of the Niger river with a sunset backdrop and the group sitting on a carpet and playing 3 tracks from Afrique Victim.

Mdou Moctar 2022 Tour Dates

2/27 – The Orange Peel – Asheville NC
2/28 – Georgia Theatre – Atlanta GA
3/2 – Variety Playhouse – Atlanta GA
3/3 – Saturn – Birmingham AL
3/4 – Cannery Ballroom – Nashville TN
3/5 – The Pageant – St. Louis MO
3/7 – Liberty Hall – Lawrence KS
3/8 – The Waiting Room – Omaha NE
3/10 – First Avenue – Minneapolis MN
3/11 – Turner Hall Ballroom – Milwaukee WI
3/12 – The Riviera Theatre – Chicago IL
3/13- MOCAD – Detroit MI
3/15 – Mr. Smalls Theatre – Millvale PA
3/16 – Agora Theatre – Cleveland OH
3/17 – Queen Elizabeth Theatre – Toronto ON
3/18 – Corona Theatre – Montreal QC
4/1 – Het Bos – Antwerpen, BE
4/2 – AB-club – Brussels, BE
4/3 – Bumann – Köln DE
4/4 Paradiso – Amsterdam NL
4/5 – Effenaar – Eindhoven, NL
4/6 – Komedia – Brighton, UK
4/7 – Hare & Hounds – Birmingham, UK
4/8 – The Sugar Club – Dublin, IE
4/9 – Ulster Sports Club – Belfast, UK
4/10 – Drygate – Glasgow, UK
4/11 – The Brudenell Social Club – Leeds, UK
4/12 – YES – Manchester, UK
4/14 – EartH Theatre – London, UK
4/15 – La cave aux Poètes – Roubaix/Lille, FR
4/16 – Le Hasard Ludique – Paris, FR
4/17 – Doornroosje – Nijmegen, NL
4/18 – Molotow – Hamburg, DE
4/19 – Alice – Copenhagen, DK
4/20 – Nefertiti – Gothenburg, SE
4/21 – Blaa – Oslo, NO
4/22 – Fasching -Stockholm, SE
4/23 – Plan B – Malmö, SE
4/24 – Frannz Club – Berlin, DE
4/25 – UT Connewitz – Leipzig, DE
4/26 – Meetfactory – Prague, CZ
4/27 – Kapu – Linz, AU
4/28 – Rote Fabrik – Zurich, CH
5/1 – De Post – Oostende, BE