Mdou Moctar shares new performance video, Live at the Niger River

Mdou Moctar has just released a new live performance video, titled Live at the Niger River. The live performance clip is 19 minutes long and features the Nigerien guitarist and his bandmates performing songs from their latest album, Afrique Victime, along the bank of the Niger River. Check it out below.

Bassist Mike Coulton says in a press release, “A friend of ours had taken us to a place on the outskirts of Niamey, “In the bush”. This land was right on the Niger River: a river flowing through Guinea, Mali, Niger, and Nigeria. Brainstorming different locations for filming, we came up with the idea to film a few songs at this location as the sun was coming up one morning.”

He adds: “We set up quickly as we didn’t want to lose filming the sun coming up. We made a fire to keep us warm and also to keep the Tuareg tea brewing while we played. As we started playing “Tala Tannam” the sun came up and the two-colored Saharan bird, the pied crow, the symbol for Mdou Moctar, flew above us. Midway through the session we were greeted by a pack of goats coming towards us from who knows where. They stopped and listened for a bit. Totally spontaneous, as things usually are for the Mdou Moctar group. This session proved to be one of the most beautiful performances we’ve played together.”

Last month Mdou Moctar released the short film, Afrique Victime: The Documentary.