Lo'Jo (formerly Lo'Jo Triban) is a French band, gathering a group of France-based musicians of various origins, performing and recording a blend of

world music "World music" is an English phrase for styles of music from non-English speaking countries, including quasi-traditional, Cross-cultural communication, intercultural, and traditional music. World music's broad nature and elasticity as a musical ...

, with strong gipsy, North African as well as French

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

elements.

History

The band was founded in 1982 in

Angers Angers (, , ;) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Duchy of Anjou, Anjou until the French Revolution. The i ...

, France, by singer/keyboardist Denis Péan and Richard Bourreau (violin/kora). These two have remained central to Lo'Jo throughout their history. For several years, with a rotating cast of members, they played events locally, working with acrobats, street theatre, mime, dancers and film as part of their overall presentation. They have subsequently maintained a communal lifestyle, based in Angers. By the end of the 1980s, they were playing throughout Europe and had appeared in New York as part of an artists' collective. Including Nicholas 'Kham' Meslien (bass) and Matthieu Rousseau (drums) (later replaced by Franck Vaillant), they consolidated their line-up, and their first album, ''Fils de Zamal'', was released in 1993. In 1995 the group added

Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–196 ...

singer/saxophonist Yamina Nid El Mourid and her sister, Nadia, who brought a strong North African influence to the music. In 1996, the new lineup recorded ''Sin Acabar'', and 1997 saw them complete ''Mojo Radio'', both with English producer Justin Adams. Upon the latter's release they found more acclaim in the world music community, getting them on the

WOMAD WOMAD ( ; World of Music, Arts and Dance) is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance. History WOMAD was founded in 1980 by English rock musician Peter Gabriel, w ...

circuit. In 1999, they journeyed to Bamako,

Mali Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is the List of African countries by area, eighth-largest country in Africa, with an area of over . The country is bordered to the north by Algeria, to the east b ...

, to begin work on ''Bohème de Cristal''. While in Mali, they became involved in the organization of the '' Desert Music Festival'' held in January 2001. They have also collaborated with a wide variety of musicians, including

Tinariwen Tinariwen (Tamasheq language, Tamasheq: ; with vowels ; plural of ténéré meaning "desert") is a collective of Tuareg people, Tuareg musicians from the Sahara region of southern Algeria and of northern Mali, in the region of Azawad. Considered ...

. In 2002, they released the acclaimed album, ''Au Cabaret Sauvage'' (originally issued in France as ''L'une des Siens''). This was followed by a live album ''Ce Soir Là'' (2003), and a new studio album ''Bazar Savant'' (2006). In 2009, they released the album ''Cosmophono'', and toured in the UK.

Discography

* ''Fils De Zamal'' (1993) * ''Sin Acabar'' (1996) * ''Mojo Radio'' (1998) * ''Bohême De Cristal'' (2000) * ''Au Cabaret Sauvage'' (issued in France as ''L'Une des Siens'') (2002) * ''Ce Soir Là... (Live)'' (2003) * ''Bazar Savant'' (2006) * ''Tu Connais Lo'Jo?'' (2007, compilation) * ''Cosmophono'' (2009) * ''Cinema El Mundo'' (2012) * ''310 Lunes'' (2014) * ''Fonetiq Flowers'' (2017) * ''Transe de papier'' (2020) * ''Feuilles Fauves'' (2024)

Other contributions

*'' Hear Music Volume 7: Waking'' (2002,

Hear Music Hear Music was a record label that was founded in 2007 in a partnership between Concord Music Group and Starbucks. Hear Music began as a catalog company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1990 before being purchased by Starbucks in 1999. Concep ...

) - "Kamarad"

References

External links

Official site BBC World Music Awards 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:LoJo Musical groups from Pays de la Loire Musical groups from Angers