GUEDRA GUEDRA - Mutant - CD [AUG 29]

CD

The music of Guedra Guedra is imbued with Abdellah’s vision of cultural and technological decolonization, one that celebrates Pan-Africanism and interrogates the way mainstream production tools lack the ability to capture non-Western musical expressions. “In African traditions, rhythm especially in its polyrhythmic form is not merely a pulse or a measure: it is a cartography of life. It expresses social complexity, layers of oral history, community dynamics, and the spiritual dimensions of existence,” he says. “Transmitting this richness from generation to generation through practice and listening is also an act of resistance, a way of preserving knowledge and sensibilities that dominant narratives have long tried to marginalize or simplify.”

Guedra Guedra further ties himself to his country’s culture with the ornate face mask he wears while performing. Created by the Moroccan artist Meryem Aboulouafa, the mask is inspired by the veils worn by the Zayan people of the Middle Atlas mountains in Morocco as they sing in structured circles, recite poetry, and play bendir drums, seeking a shared state of trance.

Today (July 1st, '25) Guedra Guedra shares MUTANT’s hypnotic first single “Drift of Drummer” and its accompanying music video, shot in Marrakech and directed by Romain Cherbonnier. Taking inspiration from the musical traditions of the town of Kouroussa in Guinea, “Drift of Drummer” foregrounds the djembé drum, a key instrument in West African music that was played in the fields to energize workers, with rhythms mirroring the sounds of labor. “African percussion is more than just music; it represents the heartbeat of life, from breathing and walking to the changing seasons and the pulse of the earth,” says Abdellah.

Tracklist: 

1. Drift of Drummer 
2. Paradigm 
3. Renegade
4. Calling Out
5. The Arc of Three Colours
6. Tribes With Flags
7. Ring of Fire
8. Four Lambs
9. Z
10. Tamayyurt
11. Enlightenment