Afrique Victime

2021 album by Mdou Moctar

Afrique Victime
A pied crow flying over a purple outline of Africa, which morphs into a woman's face at the south end of the continent
Studio album by
Mdou Moctar
Released21 May 2021 (2021-05-21)
StudioMultiple places[1]
Genre
  • Rock
  • blues
  • assouf
Length41:23
LabelMatador
ProducerMichael Coltun
Mdou Moctar chronology
Ilana: The Creator
(2019) 		Afrique Victime
(2021) 		Funeral for Justice
(2024)

Afrique Victime is the sixth album by Tuareg musician Mdou Moctar. It was released on 21 May 2021 as the artist's first album with Matador Records. The album is sung almost entirely in Tamasheq, though parts are in French. The album talks about political themes like sexism, war crimes, and colonialism.[1][2]

Moctar and his band began recording the album while he was touring for his previous album, Ilana: The Creator. They recorded in several studios and other spaces. The band went on tour in 2022 to promote its release. They released a companion documentary about the creation of the album, featuring the difficulties faced by their band members living on two continents, Africa and the United States.[3]

The album received positive reviews from international publications, several of which listed it as one of the best albums of 2021. The album was the gateway for Mdou Moctar's popularity, according to the magazine Spin.[4]

Background

Mdou Moctar partnered with American record label Sahel Sounds to release his music globally, including his previous album, Ilana: The Creator.[5] He later switched his label to Matador Records; Afrique Victime was his first album with the label.[2][6][5]

The album features the rock, blues, and assouf genres.[1][7] It was recorded in multiple places, including Niamey, Niger.[1] Compared to Moctar's previous work, it features more African fusion than blues.[8] Moctar sings in the Tamasheq language, except for some parts in French.[9] Moctar said of the album's themes:

The key element is to get through the message, even subconsciously, that the continent of Africa is being victimized, and to understand what France is doing in terms of colonialism on the African continent and how France must help.[10]

Recording process

During Moctar's tour for Ilana (The Creator), he started recording this album during small breaks in the tour. The record was made in several different studios. Since Mdou Moctar, as he said in an interview with Reverb, is reluctant to spend too much time cooped up in a studio, the band recorded the album in intervals, over a few weeks. He said that studios worsen the listening experience as there is a person manipulating the recordings.[11] Afrique Victime was his first album with studio equipment and professional sound engineers. Bass guitarist Mikey Coltun stated that the band shot the songs in one take.[12] Moctar based the album on his environment and surroundings.[13] The songs were recorded in a variety of locations, including backstage spaces.[14][15]

Release

Mdou Moctar performing Afrique Victime
Mdou Moctar performing Afrique Victime at the 2022 Pori Jazz Festival in Pori, Finland.

The album was released on 21 May 2021, under Matador Records, an American independent label.[1] The album's length is 41 minutes and 23 seconds, consisting of 9 songs.[16] The album was released in digital, vinyl, and CD versions.[17] In homage to his first albums, which listeners shared on phones using Bluetooth, he released a collector's edition Nokia 6120 handset with the album loaded on it.[18][19]

Following the release, he announced a 2022 tour, making stops in the United States, Canada, England, Germany, France, Sweden, and more. The tour started on February 27 in North Carolina and ended on August 6 in Poland.[20]

Documentary

In September 2021, Matador Records relased a 10-minute documentary featuring the creation of Afrique Victime.[21][22][21][23] It was mainly shot by bassist Mikey Coltun, who had travelled to Niger to record the album.[3] It shows the political circumstances happening in Niger, including guerilla factions, which had prevented them from touring. As Moctar stated:[24][24][25]

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.[24]

The documentary shows the band's experience being trapped in the COVID-19 pandemic. Coltun is shown interviewing the other band members about their expertise for Music.[26] It includes footage of live shows.[27]

Tracks

The album is about violence in Africa. In an interview with Reverb, Moctar mentioned a massacre near his town that killed 203 people.[12] The songs combines traditional Saharan beats, such as takamba, with American guitar.[28] Many of the songs have repeated riffs, handclapping, and slow buildups to a climax.[29] They feature Moctar's left-handed guitar style, with hammer-ons from his right hand, and energetic riffs.[17] Moctar plays songs with two or three chords.[11]

"Chismiten"

"Chismiten" was released on 7 October 2020. The song is in the Tamasheq language.[30] It starts with the sound of a rooster crowing and footsteps walking over crunchy land, then a psychedelic guitar melody.[31] Then, the other bandmates join, completing the song.[32][33] The music video contains cellphone footage of weddings and markets of Niger.[34]

"Chismiten" was described by AllMusic as "desert blues with fearless rock & roll swagger".[35] Music website Exclaim! described its lyrics as like a "parental scolding".[36]

"Taliat"

On January 28, 2019, "Taliat" was released. Moctar stated: "'Taliat' means woman, in our community, women are queens, they have a lot of power, that['s] why I use the term 'taliat' to talk about them. A woman in the Tuareg community has to be protected, but she also has to be treated as equal."[37][38][39]

The music video is a one-shot of band members Mdou Moctar, Mike Coltun, and Ahmoudou Madassane listening to the song in the car. Coltun mentioned: "If you look closely, you can see Mdou singing along".[39]

The song was described by pop culture website Uproxx as a "guitar-driven psychedelic rocker".[40] Music magazine No Depression called the song "a song of lost love in which Moctar’s sweeping, wah pedal-enhanced runs could break away from the rhythm section like a competitive horse race."[15]

"Ya Habibti"

"Ya Habibti" is dedicated to Moctars' partner, Layla.[41] The song includes clapping, acoustic guitar runs, flickering percussion, and scratchy acoustics.[10][42]

"Tala Tannam"

The title of "Tala Tannam" translates to "Your Tears".[43] The track features a guitar and some percussion surrounded by gang vocals, as well as group harmonies.[44][11]

The music video was shot in Niamey and directed by Cem Misirlioglu. Coltun said, "The video includes friends and family—in the Tuareg community in villages around Niamey as well as Hausa people from villages in the Dosso region."[45]

The song was described by AllMusic and a "sweetly devotional love song" with a "soft, acoustic texture".[35] The music website Stereogum described it as a "dusty acoustic reverie".[46] The song was described by Inews.co.uk as a "sandstorm of noise",[47] and by Exclaim! as having a "relatively relaxed mode".[36]

"Untitled"

"Untitled" has a remix by Kenyan guitar band Duma.[48]

"Asdikte Akal"

"Asdikte Akal" is about Moctar's homeland, and his love for it.[49] It talks about Tuareg separatist violence.[32] It was described by AllMusic as "slinky".[35]

"Layla"

"Layla" is named after Moctar's partner and talks about his love for her.[41] A review by Pitchfork described the song as acoustic blues.[1] The song also contains fills with drum machines, as well as group harmonies.[11][50]

"Afrique Victime"

"Afrique Victime" starts with 20 seconds of silence, followed by Moctar playing the guitar.[51] The song is about Niger's colonialism by the French.[52] The song references the Voulet–Chanoine Mission, in which French troops killed Nigeriens and hanged their bodies on trees.[2][49] AllMusic described the song as "the sonic and emotional centerpiece".[35]

Other editions

Afrique Victime has been released in multiple official editions, including the Deluxe Edition and Afrique Refait.[53][54]

Deluxe Edition

In February 24, 2022, Moctar released a deluxe edition with nine new songs as well as the nine in the original. The deluxe edition includes the song "Nakanegh Dich", which was cut from the final version of the original album. The song was recorded with Rob Schnapf in the city of Los Angeles. It was the first Moctar song to include the wah-wah pedal.[53][55] Coltun recalled Moctar calling Schnapf into the studio to control the pedal with his feet while Moctar played a guitar solo.[56][57][58]

Afrique Refait

In 2022, Moctar released an album filled with remixes by other artists. The songs include a remixed version of Taliat by Rey Sapienz and MC Dougis and multiple reworks of Chismiten.[54]

Reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic86/100[59]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[35]
Exclaim!9/10[60]
The Guardian[19]
The Line of Best Fit8/10[61]
MusicOMH[62]
Paste9.0/10[63]
Pitchfork8.4/10[1]
Rolling Stone[64]
Uncut[65]
Under the Radar[66]

The website OkayAfrica stated that "From the chaotic and violent crescendos of the title track to the plaintive voices that echo through you in Tala Tannam there are moments on this record that match the most defiant wile outs of Jimi Hendrix".[33] The British magazine Our Culture Mag described the album as having a "palpable sense of urgency and aliveness to Mdou Moctar’s music that not only speaks to the spirit of the people behind it but resonates far beyond."[67] AllMusic described the album as the "most conclusive example of Moctar's multidimensional talents to date".[35] Guitar World described the songs as "rapid".[68]

Afrique Victime was ranked the 31st best album of 2021 on Metacritic, a popular review aggregator.[59] It was picked as album of the month by British music magazine DJ Mag.[51] Several critics added it to their end-of-year best album lists, including The New York Times,[69] Pitchfork,[70] The Guardian,[71] Rolling Stone,[72] and Consequence.[73]

Political context

The album talks about political issues including war crimes and sexism.[1] Moctar talks about political violence in his home country, Niger, and problems and murder caused by motorcycle gangs. Moctar hints at the history of Africa and its colonialism in the title song, "Afrique Victime".[2] Moctar stated, “Afrique Victime is a message to all of the countries with money and power who come into Africa and kill the leaders who try to empower the people and lead revolutions. This pushes the area into danger and instability and emboldens the terrorists, and it’s the people who suffer and have no justice".[18][68] The album talks about the exploitation of Africa, including the Nigerien mining plunder, and French imperialism.[74][75] In an interview with Dazed, a lifestyle magazine, he said "The US can kill people from the sky now, but pilots can’t eliminate 4,000 terrorists living in our desert? How can the influence of 52 countries not resolve that issue? How!"[74][76] He talks about sparse food and electricity in his hometown Niger.[13]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Mdou Moctar.

Afrique Victime track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Chismiten"4:58
2."Taliat"3:48
3."Ya Habibti"3:31
4."Tala Tannam"5:38
5."Untitled"1:25
6."Asdikte Akal"4:31
7."Layla"4:26
8."Afrique Victime"7:25
9."Bismilahi Atagah"5:36
Total length:41:23
Afrique Victime (Deluxe Edition)
No.TitleLength
1."Chismiten (Demo)"4:23
2."Taliat (Live)"5:48
3."Ya Habibti (Demo)"1:44
4."Tala Tannam (Demo)"1:16
5."Asdikte Akal (Live)"3:15
6."Layla (Live)"4:14
7."Afrique Victime (Live)"4:33
8."Bishmilahi Atagah (Demo)"4:51
9."Nakanegh Dich"4:38

Personnel

Mdou Moctar

  • Mahamadou 'Mdou Moctar' Souleymane – lead guitar, vocals[12]
  • Ahmoudou Madassane – rhythm guitar, backing vocals[1]
  • Michael Coltun – bass guitar, backing vocals, drum machines, production[12]
  • Souleymane Ibrahim – drums, percussion, backing vocals[1]

Additional personnel

  • Robert Beatty – artwork[77]

Charts

Chart performance for Afrique Victime
Chart (2021) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[78] 180
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[79] 92
Scottish Albums (OCC)[80] 31
UK Album Sales (OCC)[81] 36
UK Album Downloads (OCC)[82] 57
UK Physical Albums (OCC)[83] 36
UK Vinyl Albums (OCC)[84] 22
UK Record Store (OCC)[85] 14
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[86] 16
UK Independent Album Breakers (OCC)[87] 2

The album peaked at number 2 in the UK Independent Singles and Album Breakers Charts. It entered the top 30 on the UK Vinyl Albums Chart, UK Physical Albums Chart, the UK Record Store Chart, and the UK Independent Singles and Albums Charts. It entered the top 100 in the Dutch Album Chart, the Scottish Album Chart, the UK Album Sales Chart, and the UK Physical Album Chart, and the top 200 on the Belgian Album Chart.[81][83][84][85][87]

References

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