In 1998, the alienesque Hoba Hoba Spirit emerged in the form of a duo from Casablanca. Vivacious, and void of airs and graces, they began playing music for no more than the amusement of close friends.
Réda, guitarist, singer-songwriter, collaborates with Aboubakr, percussionist and singer. Their style: rock, rai, gnawa (among others) amalgamated to become what was later christened ‘haiha attitude’, loosely translating as “priority to the festive.”
This contagious virus seduced Aboubakr’s younger brother, one time bedroom guitarist, prompting him to fashion the dream team in 1999. Their debut concert was held at the Federation of Oeuvres Laiques, (FOL) a forum renowned for creativity, in Casablanca at the end of the same year. This was swiftly followed by a stream of concerts giving birth to the well known songs, “Bienvenue a Casa”, “La télé”, “Khoroto Connection”, “H’rig” and the emblematic cover of Nass El Ghiwane’s “Fine Ghadi Biya Khoya.” Réda’s lyrics stab with sparkling clarity with a a blend of both French and Derija, the Moroccan dialect of Arabic.
Summer 2002, Adil (drums) and Amadou (bass) join the force to prove beyond doubt, a few months later at the FOL, that Hoba Hoba Spirit takes live music seriously, despite the departure of Aboubakr. Sensational success, confirmed by a subsequent booking for the famous Essaouira Gnawa Festival in 2003. A new epoch begins, the press explodes and Hoba Hoba Spirit is christened ‘the revelation of Essaouira 2003.’ The Album number one is an eponymous recording.
by Ineeleng Bogosi
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