Etran de L’Aïr from Agadez is widely loved for their dynamic repertoire of hypnotic guitar solos and sun-drenched melodies that evoke the warmth and dusty expanses of the Sahara. Etran de L’Aïr played an excellent and sold-out concert presented by ALICE back in 2022, so we are pleased to invite the virtuoso desert rock trio back in May.

Etran de L’Aïr from Agadez, Niger, delivers magical and solid guitar ecstasy in feverish progressions. They are widely loved for their dynamic repertoire of hypnotic solos and sun-drenched melodies that transport the mind to the warmth and dusty expanses of the Sahara. Etran de L’Aïr draws on traditions from wedding bands in northern Niger but also connects with the Tuareg blues, known from names like Tamikrest and Mdou Moctar, who have previously graced the program at ALICE.

However, Etran de L’Aïr themselves refer to Malian musicians like Ali Farka Touré and Oumou Sangaré, rather than the well-known Tuareg names, when mentioning their primary inspirations. And this makes them stand out. The band, actually a collective of family members, started in 1995 in the city of Agadez. Initially, they had only extremely sparse elements at their disposal. For example, they had no electric guitars but had to manipulate acoustic guitars to amplify and distort them. This charming and hands-on approach also characterized their debut album, “No. 1”, released on Sahel Sounds in 2018. The album was recorded live on a mobile phone, giving an incredibly authentic sense of raw documentation – a feeling that led The New Yorker’s Amanda Petrusich to declare the release as the best album of the year.

Since then, Etran de L’Aïr has released two more albums, most recently “Agadez” (Sahel Sounds, 2022), and has performed a plethora of concerts at venues and festivals around the world. Etran de L’Aïr played an excellent and thunderous sold-out concert presented by ALICE in 2022, so one can look forward to them bringing back their hypnotic tones to ALICE in May.

ALICE at Stairway
While our concert hall at Nørre Allé 7 is being renovated, ALICE is temporarily housed at Stairway in Vanløse in 2023.