Omar Bombino Moctar was born in a Tuareg camp near the city of Agadez in Niger. This nomadic people has been at the center of the territorial conflicts that have bloodied the vast Sahara desert for decades. In the 2000s, the Niger government even banned the Tuareg from playing the guitar, a symbol of resistance.

Influenced by Jimmy Hendrix and Mark Knopfler, nicknamed the Sultan of Shred, Bombino plays long, hypnotic guitar solos in which you can feel the fire and the heat of the desert sands, scorching by day and freezing by night. A musical nomad, he has toured extensively in Europe and the U.S., appeared at the Newport Jazz Festival, and performed with Keith Richard and Robert Plant ⁽¹⁾.

We saw him perform at the jazz club Les Jumeaux, with Alhassan Kawissan Mohamed on guitar, Djakrave Dia on bass and Wilhelm Corey on percussion and drums (dancer unknown).

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⁽¹⁾ In 2024, Rolling Stone ranked Bombino 199th among the 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time.

→ For more information, visit the official website of Bombino.