Dwarfs of East Agouza and Baba Commandant — live event
Burkina Faso has always marched to its own drummer. The small West African nation has sometimes been overshadowed by its more populous northern neighbor Mali, and was once the southeastern frontier of the sprawling medieval Malian Empire. This empire spanned 10 modern nations and dozens of ethnic groups, and was knit together by the Mandé or Mandinka language and cultural complex—a language of kings, scholars, and epic poetry still spoken today. But “The Land of Upright Men” is a cultural powerhouse in its own right, and few artists embody the creative, independent spirit of Burkina Faso as Baba Commandant & the Mandingo Band, a four-piece ensemble that reimagines ancient Mandé musical traditions for the 21st century. Dwarfs Of East Agouza are a leading force of improvised musical excitement and stand apart from wider parts of a post-punk underground scene that doesn’t fit neatly into any post-punk genre of the last twenty years. Founded in Cairo circa 2015 by Alan Bishop (ex-Sun City Girls and co-founder of Sublime Frequencies) with Sam Shalabi (Land Of Kush, Karkhana) and Maurice Louca (Karkhana) the trio developed a unique and always recognizable sound, but with many faces to show. The group started playing together in Cairo’s Agouza district in 2012 to explore hypnotic local traditions, as heard on their excellent debut album “Bes.” Improvisation on the highest level. Organic, never arty. On their latest recording, The Green Dogs of Dashur, the band breaks off all constraints and reveals a resolutely free album offering the listener variations of seductive melodies and unhinged improvised trance.
Starts: 2023-10-18T20:00:57Z
Ends: 2023-10-18T22:00:57Z
Where: 1647 Weirfield Street, New York 11385, United States
Price: $20.0