Krar Collective are a London-based three piece band who joined Damon Albarn’s UK train tour in 2012.  Six years on they have toured the US, performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival and played stages like Paris’ Musee du Quai Branly.

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Led by krar player Temesgen Zeleke, a former student of Ethio-jazz legend Mulatu Astatke, they perform a rootsy yet contemporary take on traditional music from Ethiopia based on other-worldly modes and driven by hypnotic rhythms.

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The traditional acoustic krar lyre is associated with the azmari minstrel tradition; electrified, in the hands of Zeleke it becomes a gritty, ancient rock guitar. Accompanied just by traditional kebero drums played by Grum Begashaw and fronted by the stunning vocals of Genet Assefa, Krar Collective with a minimal line up create a surprisingly full band sound, leading them to be dubbed ‘The Ethiopian White Stripes’.

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Traditional Ethiopian music is based on a pentatonic scale with asymmetrical rhythms which in the ‘golden age’ of the 1960s and early 1970s combined with contemporary Western styles to create the thrilling hybrid known as ‘Ethio-jazz’. The repression of the military dictatorship between 1974-91 plunged Ethiopian culture into the doldrums but a major revival of interest and activity began in 1998 with the launch of the acclaimed Éthiopiques series, which brought back to prominence such ‘golden age’ performers as Mahmoud Ahmed, Mulatu Astatke and Tlahoun Gèssèssè. A younger generation of Ethiopian singers has also emerged, including Teddy Afro, Aster Aweke and Gigi.

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We are delighted to present Krar Collective who in the first half of the gig will talk about Ethiopia, its music and instruments, and their own fascinating story – all illustrated by key pieces of music.  The second half will feature a full performance by the band with songs that journey from gently, rippling acoustic numbers to truly rabble-rousing. This music that is at once African, and yet unique to Ethiopia will move your soul and rock your feet.

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