Speed Caravan is a World music band from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

. Their music combines

Ma'luf ''Ma'luf'' ( ar, مألوف, acquainted, familiar ''Ma'lūf'') is a genre of art music in the Andalusian classical music tradition of Algeria, Libya, and Tunisia. It is of Iberian origin and was introduced to the Maghreb The Maghreb (; a ...

Folktronica Folktronica is a genre of music comprising various elements of folk music and electronica, often featuring uses of acoustic instruments – especially stringed instruments – and incorporating hip hop, electronic or dance rhythms, although ...

and

Rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

amongst others.

History

The band was founded in 2005 by half-Algerian half-French

Oud , image=File:oud2.jpg , image_capt=Syrian oud made by Abdo Nahat in 1921 , background= , classification= * String instruments *Necked bowl lutes , hornbostel_sachs=321.321-6 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded with a plectrum , ...

-player

Mehdi Haddab Mehdi () is a common Arabic masculine given name, meaning "rightly guided". People having the name Mehdi are in general originating from Iran mostly and sometimes India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Azerbaijan, France, Morocco, Algeria, ...

and bass player Pascal « Pasco » Teillet. The band was later on supplemented by keyboard player Hermione Frank – who already played with Mehdi Haddab in the Band Ekova.. About founding and naming the band, Mehdi Haddab said in 2008: ''At the beginning, I decided to create this trio with Pascal Teillet and Hermione Frank to have a repertoire . It was three years ago and it corresponds to the moment when I started systematically playing the electric lute... At that time, with Pasco we saw each other several evenings a week, we sometimes worked until nine in the morning, we were partying, we were making music… We spend a year like that and we built something in this whirlwind of creation.''... » During that time, Speed Caravan played gigs at the festival

Solidays Solidays () is a French annual music festival that takes place at the Longchamp Racecourse in Paris at the end of June. Organized by Solidarité sida (a French HIV/AIDS awareness group for youth), the event brings together more than 150 artists a ...

in 2006 and 2007. Speed Caravan released their debut album ' in 2008, cooperating with various artists such as MC Spex from

Asian Dub Foundation Asian Dub Foundation (ADF) is an English electronic music band that combines musical styles including rap rock, dub, dancehall, ragga, and South Asian music. The group also includes traditional rock instruments such as electric bass and gui ...

Rachid Taha Rachid Taha ( ar, رشيد طه, Latn, ar, Rashīd Ṭāhā, ; 18 September 1958 – 12 September 2018) was an Algerian singer and activist based in France described as "sonically adventurous". His music was influenced by many different styles i ...

und

Rodolphe Burger Rudolph or Rudolf may refer to: People * Rudolph (name), the given name including a list of people with the name Religious figures * Rudolf of Fulda (died 865), 9th century monk, writer and theologian * Rudolf von Habsburg-Lothringen (1788� ...

. The album includes two cover versions, namely

Galvanize Galvanization or galvanizing (American and British English spelling differences, also spelled galvanisation or galvanising) is the process of applying a protective zinc coating to steel or iron, to prevent rusting. The most common method is hot ...

from the

Chemical Brothers The Chemical Brothers are an English electronic music duo formed by Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons in Manchester in 1989. They were pioneers (along with the Prodigy, Fatboy Slim, the Crystal Method, and other acts) in bringing the big beat genre ...

and Killing an Arab from

The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in 1978 in Crawley, Crawley, West Sussex. Throughout numerous lineup changes since the band's formation, guitarist, lead vocalist, and songwriter Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith has re ...

, the latter dealing with the plot of the novel The Stranger from

Albert Camus Albert Camus ( , ; ; 7 November 1913 – 4 January 1960) was a French philosopher, author, dramatist, and journalist. He was awarded the 1957 Nobel Prize in Literature at the age of 44, the second-youngest recipient in history. His work ...

. The band appeared on the festival

Fnac Fnac () is a large French retail chain selling cultural and electronic products, founded by André Essel and Max Théret in 1954. Its head office is in ''Le Flavia'' in Ivry-sur-Seine near Paris. It is an abbreviation of Fédération Nationale d ...

Indétendances in the Paris Plage as a support act of

Keziah Jones Keziah Jones (born Olufemi Sanyaolu on 10 January 1968) is a Nigerian singer-songwriter and guitarist. He describes his musical style as "Blufunk", which is a fusion between raw blues elements and hard, edgy funk rhythms. Also his Nigerian roo ...

. The second album from 2016 is a hommage to

Jeff Beck Geoffrey Arnold Beck (born 24 June 1944) is an English rock guitarist. He rose to prominence with the Yardbirds and after fronted the Jeff Beck Group and Beck, Bogert & Appice. In 1975, he switched to a mainly instrumental style, with a focus ...

and

Jimmy Page James Patrick Page (born 9 January 1944) is an English musician who achieved international success as the guitarist and founder of the rock band Led Zeppelin. Page is prolific in creating guitar riffs. His style involves various alternative ...

, who made a deep impression on Mehdi Haddab during the latter's childhood. Tours corresponding to that album lead the band all the way to the festival The Spirit of Tengri in

Almaty Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the List of most populous cities in Kazakhstan, largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to ...

in Kazackstan in 2017. Speed Caravan's third album ' was recorded in 2020 together with

Hamdi Benani Hamdi Benani ( ar, حمدي بناني; 1 January 1943 – 21 September 2020) was an Algerian singer and musician. Biography Benani was born in Annaba in 1943. His uncle, , encouraged him to start singing because of the quality of his voice an ...

, who took over the vocals. As the name of that album may suggest, the music is a Folktronic interpretation of

Andalusi nubah Andalusī nūbah (نوبة أندلسيّة), also transliterated nūba, nūbā, or nouba (pl. nūbāt), or in its classical Arabic form, nawba, nawbah, or nōbah, is a music genre found in the North African Maghreb, Maghrib states of Morocco, Alg ...

. Hamdi Benani did not live to see the release of the album in June 2021,. so that the album may partially be seen as an obituary to the ''white angel'', who had been present in the Algerian music scene for decades.

Discography

* 2008: ', (Newbled Records) * 2016: ', (World Village) * 2021: ', (Buda Musique)

References

{{Reflist

External links

bei

laut.de laut.de is a German online magazine dealing exclusively with entertainment music, especially pop music, rock music, alternative music, alternative, Metal music, metal, hip-hop, jazz and Techno music, techno. It comprises record reviews, intervi ...

(German)
Speed Caravan discography
Algerian electronic musicians French electronic music groups Electronic music groups World music groups French world music groups Algerian world music groups