Group Inerane

2011 was a decent year for tours of artists from the Sublime Frequencies label. In May, Group Doueh from Morocco were here for the second time and Syrian legend Omar Souleyman made his third UK tour in December. Back in November we were treated to the debut performances by Group Inerane who hail from Niger. I caught up with the band when they appeared in Leeds.

Group Inerane play a similar kind of Touareg guitar music that you can hear from the widely-known Tinariwen but with a much tougher and faster beat. This is music made for dancing rather than for contemplation. So far the band have released two albums on Sublime Frequencies, both with the rough and ready quality that is found on the Group Doueh sets. It would be great to hear an album from them recorded in a decent studio.

There were four instrumentalists present on this tour. Band leader Bibi Ahmed and Touareg legend Koudede both on guitar and vocals, Koutana on bass and Lalo on drums. I turned up a few hours before the gig in order to take some photos and was welcomed with the utmost friendliness from the group. They made me feel like an esteemed guest and were very patient with all of my photographic requests. With it being evening time, outdoor shots were impossible plus it was pouring with rain so I had to work in a not very interesting environment using flash. Despite their tiredness from a long tour, all the group were kind and accommodating. I even got an invitation to visit them in Niger!

The concert itself was great and the sound quality was perfect in the Howard Assembly Rooms. However, it was all-seated so this made the audience reluctant to get up and dance till the very end. Also, Koutana broke a bass string early on and had to play with just three strings for most of the set, although you never would have noticed. It was a great end to their month-long European tour.