Mdou Moctar announces new EP, Niger EP Vol. 1

WH Moustapha

Mdou Moctar has just released a new EP, Niger EP Vol. 1, via Matador. The new release features alternate and live versions of his songs, which were recorded from 2017 to 2020 in Niger. Check out the visualiser for “Chismiten (Drum Machine Version)” below and stream the new EP in full.

Producer/bass player Mikey Coltun said in a press release, “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 begin the series with a mix of recordings from 2017-2020, documenting the band at weddings, picnics, rehearsals, and even impromptu house concerts. A must have for any Mdou Moctar fan!”

Mdou Moctar’s last album was 2021’s Afrique Victime.