Arnaud Contreras Photo Journal

This 2011 november evening, I had the chance to witness my first tuareg rock battle.

On one side of the ring, Bombino from Agadez, Niger, jumping all around and playing with his Fender as fast as he could.
On the other side, Tamikrest from Kidal, Mali, calmly and deeply launching their Gibson sound in the air.

And the winner was ….
Ahmed Abdoulaye Boudane (aka “Ag Jackson”), young tuareg painter, who made a brilliant saharan air guitar show.

Listen to Bombino +++ and Tamikrest +++

Discover Ahmed Abdoulaye Boudane work +++

The Saharan society is changing fast.
Still a beautiful desert but not only.

Most populated cities such as Tamanrasset are microcosms revealing all the problem of this touristic region: threats of terrorism, traffics, illegal migration, pressures on cultural and natural heritages.

The only ways to escape this harsh reality for Tuareg’s youth are cybercafé and festivals celebrating their guitar heroes,
the “Ishumar”, such as Tinariwen bands.

In Europe, the Saharan diaspora intents to offer a positive image of their native land. They organize events and promote bands from Kidal, Djanet, Agadez or Timbuktu.

Trying to keep alive, by music, the link between Sahara and the Western World.

© Arnaud Contreras
2007-2010
www.arnaudcontreras.com

All pictures with Leica M7 and Summilux M 35mm/f 1,4 and Kodak Tri X 400 ASA

Terakaft is one of the best saharan band from the “Ishumar” movement.
Terakaft is a gang of guitarists, in the same vein as Tinariwen. Nothing astonishing about that if you consider that Terakaft was founded by Kedou and Diara, two formative and historical guitarists from Tinariwen.
Moreover Kedou accompanied Tinariwen to the very first Festival with the Desert by Chock-Essako in January 2001, and contributes four songs on their first album The Radio Tisdas Sessions.
At that time Keddou decided to take a different path to Tinariwen, which is now famous in the four corners of the globe. He left to live for two years in Algeria, in Tindouf, Tamanrasset, and then for the same period in Libya, in the desert in the south of the country. Finally, he has returned to settle in Kidal, in Mali, to the great joy of his friends and Tuareg brothers.
Kedou is a celebrity in his own land, both thanks to his part in the history of the rebellion as to his songs. He has teamed up with Diara, one of the original members of Tinariwen, and one of the more “rock’n'roll” guitarists in the group, as well as two young guitarists, Sanou and Rhissa.
It was at the Festival with the Desert of Essakane, in January a 2007, that Terakaft performed their ifirst concert, following it with the Festival of the Camel of Tessalit, before going to Bamako, to record this first album, in four days, at the legendary Bogolan Studios.
Terakaft means “the caravan” in tamashek.

discover them on their myspace +++