Dwarfs of East Agouza + Fresh Snow + Omar Bongo

Concert in Departures Series Series

The Music Gallery and TONE present
Dwarfs of East Agouza + Fresh Snow + Omar Bongo
part of the Departures Series
curated by Tad Michalak
Doors: 8PM | Show: 8:30PM
Tranzac Club, 151 Brunswick Av.
$18 Regular/$10 Members/$15 Advance 

Once again we ride with TONE in 2019, aiding and abetting their festival of improvisation, avant-everything and utterly new music. This year, we bring Montreal/Cairo stringed-instrument hero Sam Shalabi back to town with an all-star ensemble.

The Dwarfs of East Agouza is a trio from Cairo formed in 2012 by Maurice Louca (keyboards/electronics), Sam Shalabi (electric guitar/synth), and Alan Bishop (guitar/saxophone/vocals). The group utilizes improvisation to propel their unique, exciting, and hypnotic musical vision. They are putting the finishing touches on their third album which should appear sometime in late 2019. Considering each member’s many individual projects and as difficult as it is for these three to be in the same place at the same time, this is a great opportunity to witness and hear this group perform live.

Fresh Snow: Toronto kraut quartet adventures in the round. Undying synth lines and guitar fuzz merge into one vibrating beast driven by a drum beat locked into the warbling distortion. More space music for the 22nd century. Constantly moving forward building the humming, buzzing, clattering structure. Rough guitar notes cut through pulsating fuzz to converse with formless electronics. Hard psych noodling becomes a back drop for groove repetition. Hints of jangle pop dig themselves out of a squealing wall of sound.

Omar Bongo is one of the few Somali Canadian musicians proficient in the Qaraami style of classic Somali music. Omar’s skills as a songwriter and kaban player have made him a fixture of Toronto’s vibrant Somali music scene, his music has been the soundtrack for hundreds of community events and late night shisha lounges.

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