Daraa Tribes

DARAA TRIBES | Tribal Fusion & Saharan Blues (MA)

DARAA TRIBES Tribal Fusion & Saharan Blues (MA)

SANDS 8 1 DARAA TRIBES | Tribal Fusion & Saharan Blues (MA)
SANDS 8 1 DARAA TRIBES | Tribal Fusion & Saharan Blues (MA)
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Line-up

Rachid Berazougui | Electric guitar, vocals
Playing For Change (Live Outside); international festival circuits (EU/UK/NA)

Mustapha Aqermim | Rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Collective songwriting; linguistic/organizational bridge in international collaborations

Abdelkebir Saadi | Bass, backing vocals
Grounding rhythm section between Regaga and desert‑blues groove; full‑band live set

Abdelhafid “Hafid” Ami | Percussion (cajón/krakebs), backing vocals
Polyrhythms and ritual patterns (Lkaaba) integrated into an electric set

Mohamed Sabir | Drums
Drummer in the band’s amplified live configuration; adds a more driving full-kit pulse to the groove

Balkhir Razgui | Vocals, percussion (founder, in memoriam)
Founding voice of the project (2014–2024)

Style

Tribal Fusion and Saharan Blues from the palm groves of Tagounite: desert‑guitar riffs, trance percussion and call‑and‑response that turn the stage into a shared rite.

Profile

Daraa Tribes formed in 2014 in Tagounite, an oasis town in Morocco’s Draa Valley: a group of friends from different tribes translating their home’s coexistence into sound. Their “blues of the desert” intertwines Gnawa, Sahraoui, Amazigh and Regaga idioms into a contemporary language—dry, hypnotic electric guitars, a pulsing bass, polyrhythmic percussion and multilingual chorus lines (Darija, Tamazight, Hassani). On stage the band builds by accumulation: circular grooves, minimal variation and tight interplay that draws the audience into a collective dance. After consolidating an international trajectory across festivals and clubs, Daraa Tribes have just wrapped up a UK mini‑tour (Bristol–London–Manchester), reaffirming the project’s high‑intensity live dimension.

Details 

Rachid Berazougui writes and sings part of the repertoire with a desert‑tone electric guitar that leads the set’s hypnosis. (“Immerse yourself in the rich tapestry of sound that is the heartbeat of Daraa Tribes.” Playing For Change, 2025-04-01)

Mustapha Aqermim is a rhythmic and narrative engine: the band’s identity grew “in a circle,” without hierarchy, from sharing traditions. (“We didn’t plan to start a band. We just started playing together…” Matt Ross, Arab News, 2020-08-16)

UK mini‑tour (just concluded): Jam Jar (Bristol, 2026-01-03), Hootananny (Brixton, 2026-01-07), Band on the Wall (Manchester, 2026-01-11).

Sound imprint: desert‑guitar groove with a Gnawa edge—a writing approach that stays danceable even at its most ritual. (“…incorporate their Moroccan roots into a lilting groove… the edge of the North African Gnawa sounds.” Tony Benjamin, Bristol24/7, 2026-01-02)

Discography

  • Alwan (EP, 2017)

  • Igharman (LP, 2018)

  • Zamane (EP, 2019)

  • Lakbayl (single, 2021)

  • Sahara (single, 2022)

  • Torat Vol. 1 (EP, 2024)

MUSIC REVIEWS

Listening Now : Daraa Tribes – Bshara | 2024-02-02
https://lastdaydeaf.com/listening-now-daraa-tribes-bshara/

Torat Vol. 1, au fil du nouvel EP des Daraa Tribes | 2024-01-29
https://djolo.net/torat-vol-1-au-fil-nouvel-ep-daraa-tribes/

BSHARA REVIEW: The Vitality of North African Pastoral Life | 2024-01-25
https://music.coralriff.biz/bshara-vitality-north-african-pastoral-life/

Daraa Tribes Evoke the Vitality of North African Pastoral Life in the Traditional and Saharan Blues Fusion of “Bshara” | 2024-01-24
https://queencitysoundsandart.wordpress.com/2024/01/24/daraa-tribes-evoke-the-vitality-of-north-african-pastoral-life-in-the-traditional-and-saharan-blues-fusion-of-bshara/

Daily Discovery: Daraa Tribes – Bshara | 2024-01-17
https://rhythmpassport.com/daily-discovery-daraa-tribes-bshara/

Daily Discovery: Daraa Tribes – Sahara (Official Video) | 2022-10-18
https://rhythmpassport.com/daily-discovery-daraa-tribes-sahara-official-video/

Joli moment de convivialité dans le Sahara avec la Daraa Tribes | 2022-10-10
https://djolo.net/joli-moment-convivialite-dans-sahara-avec-daraa-tribes/

LAKBAYL | BLOGS’ REVIEWS | 2021-10-17
https://music.coralriff.biz/lakbayl-blog-reviews-single-release/

Toutes les Daraa Tribes se réunissent sur Lakbayl | 2021-10-08
https://djolo.net/toutes-les-daraa-tribes-se-reunissent-sur-lakbayl/

All the Daraa Tribes meet on Lakbayl | REVIEW ON DJOLO | 2021-10-08
https://music.coralriff.biz/all-daraa-tribes-meet-lakbayl-review-on-djolo/

Globalism //4 | 2021-10-04
https://lastdaydeaf.com/globalism-4/

UltraRadar. Nueva música alternativa mundial – Octubre 2021 | 2021-10-01
https://planarteria.com/2021/10/ultraradar-nueva-musica-alternativa-mundial-octubre-2021/

Quotes 

“…incorporate their Moroccan roots into a lilting groove… the edge of the North African Gnawa sounds.”

Tony Benjamin, Bristol 24/7, 2026-01-02) — https://www.bristol247.com/culture/music/bristols-month-in-world-music-january-2026/

“We are delighted to welcome back Daraa Tribes as the celebratory closing act of our first digital festival.”

Liverpool Arab Arts Festival, 2020-07-18) — https://www.arabartsfestival.com/events/daraa-tribes/

“The track… fusing ancient rhythms with contemporary flair… offering listeners a sonic journey.”

Last Day Deaf, 2024-02-02 — https://lastdaydeaf.com/listening-now-daraa-tribes-bshara/


Reviews / articles / profiles

Profiles & bio

UK tour (just concluded)

Live reviews

Torat Vol. 1

TORAT Vol. 1 from DARAA TRIBES is OUT!

TORAT Vol. 1 from DARAA TRIBES is OUT!

Torat Vol. 1

Moroccan desert blues band Daraa Tribes releases their new EP Torat Vol. 1. It is the band’s third EP and third release with label Coral Riff Music.

‘Torat’ means ‘tradition’ in Moroccan Arabic and reflects the ancestral, traditional music that not only influenced this new release, but can be heard through traditional percussion and vocal styles in each song on the EP.

Songs like ‘Bshara’ and ‘Lghram’ come directly from traditional Hassania, Amazigh, and Daraoua ancestral customs found throughout southern Morocco and across North Africa.

This reflection and representation of traditional music is met with an eclectic modern blues/rock style apparent on each track. This is a continuation of Daraa Tribes efforts on each of the band’s previous releases to innovate upon ancestral cultural traditions, using them as a foundation for their creative process.

The band simultaneously released a lyric video for the song ‘Bshara’, translated into both Hassania Arabic and English. This song tells the story of the Aarib tribe, nomadic in origin, and their historical relationship with their surrounding environments. Major themes include a cultural, social, and economic importance placed upon camels, music customs performed by the tribal youth, and greeting other tribal members traveling from Afar. These themes are not just common among nomadic Hassania culture historically in North Africa, but are still very much part of modern cultural life in the Sahara desert of Morocco.