Hoba Hoba Spirit: “Dark Bendir Army”

Photo by Kim Metthai Leland

All this week, the Song of the Day features artists playing at this weekend’s Wobeon Fest–the Austin world music festival taking over Ironwood Hall on Saturday.

Since forming as a duo in Casablanca in 1998, Hoba Hoba Spirit has sought to redefine Moroccan music, both in the Arab world and beyond. The rhythms and melodies can be traditional, but the guitar playing is purely psychedelic, recalling greats like Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page. Their songs are often satirical and dark, like today’s song of the day. “Dark Bendir Army”–featuring the bendir, a drum indigenous to North African music–tells the tale of a man with amnesia and no passport trying to figure out where he came from.

Catch Hoba Hoba Spirit at Wobeon Fest starting at 9 p.m. on the main stage.

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