Toubab Krewe launched in 2005 with a unique synthesis of African and Western musical textures. Drawing on tradition infused with a contemporary approach, the group debuted on record that same year with a self-titled album. Right out of the gate, Toubab Krewe connected with both lovers of so-called “world” music – the sort of listeners who thrilled to the music of Ali Farka Touré – as well as with aficionados of the jam band scene. Twenty -plus years later, they’re still expanding on that foundation. Toubab Krewe comes to Moe’s Alley on March 20.
Two more albums followed: 2008’s Live at the Orange Peel captured the group onstage in a hometown show in Asheville, N.C., and TK2 in 2010 found the band broadening its already wide-encompassing musical vision to incorporate surf and indie rock styles without losing the qualities that made the group special.
After nearly a decade of relentless touring, the band took a hiatus. The individual members remained as busy as ever; each would continue to be involved in multiple projects outside the framework of Toubab Krewe. But the break was never intended to be permanent, and by 2017 Toubab Krewe was back together for recording and live performances.
And even with Toubab Krewe’s busy schedule, each of the musicians finds time for myriad other musical pursuits. At the time of this interview, percussionist Luke Quaranta was at JFK for a layover on his way to play dates in London, Madrid and Paris with Weedie Braimah and The Hands of Time. “Drew [Heller, guitarist and keyboardist] plays with Floating Action,” he says. “Our drummer, Terrence Houston has also been playing with George Porter Jr. for a decade and a half.” Bassist Justin Kimmel is a veteran of Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings; he’s also a member of Brooklyn-based Afrobeat ensemble Antibalas. Multi-instrumentalist Justin Perkins plays with other groups as well.
But none of those outside activities prevent Toubab Krewe from focusing on their core musical mission of bridging African musical styles with rock. Even if one of the members can’t make a gig, the group’s unique character endures. “This lineup has been together since January 2014,” Quaranta says. “Once in a while we do shows as a quartet. And we’ve gotten comfortable as a four-piece; the continuity remains intact.” That will be the case for some of the West Coast dates (including Santa Cruz), as Houston will be on the road with Porter’s band.
In between their other commitments, the five musicians of Toubab Krewe are gearing up to begin work on a new studio album, their first since 2018’s Stylo. “We’ve got a hard drive full of 30-plus ideas, seeds of songs,” Quaranta says. “The next step is to get the five of us together for a couple day of arranging, and then a studio session.” In his view, Toubab Krewe has even more source material to work with than they had for Stylo or TK2.
But first, there’s the band’s spring and summer touring schedule. Toubab Krewe launched its 20th anniversary tour in mid 2025, and it continues through a good portion of this year. A run of dates across the U.S. will keep the band busy into April; those are followed by a succession of festival engagements leading into early fall, including some additional bookings not yet announced at press time.
Keen listeners may spot some new, as-yet-unrecorded material in Toubab Krewe’s sets this year, but the group is also fond of reaching back into its catalog. “We’re looking to go a little deeper,” Quaranta says, “bringing in other stuff that hasn’t been in the touring repertoire.” And when they revisit those tunes, they’ll bring a fresh approach. “Maybe those tunes that we haven’t been playing in awhile will be re-arranged,” he says. “That’s fun, too.”
As a seasoned group of adventurous musicians, Toubab Krewe is always up for a challenge. Quaranta recalls a recent two-night engagement at the Green Parrot in Key West. Each night featured three 90-minute sets. “So we played nine hours of music inside of 30 hours,” he recalls with a laugh. And the band played each night’s set without repeating any songs.
Not only were those gigs a success, they helped prepare Toubab Krewe for this tour. “Before that gig,” Quaranta says, “there were some songs we hadn’t played in a long time, where we felt, ‘Oh, these aren’t ready for the stage.’” Now they are. “We felt super-tight coming out of there. But even more importantly, we stretched out on the tunes.” He says that in some songs, “little things happened” that he predicts may find their way into the band’s future.
Quaranta says that the Santa Cruz date will be special among the West coast engagements. “Santa Cruz is always such a great time, and this time Lespecial is joining us.” The prog-tronic power trio from Connecticut makes music that’s dark and heavy, a contrast that actually pairs well with Toubab Krewe’s style. “They’re technically supporting us,” Quaranta says, “but it’s more like a double bill.”
Toubab Krewe with Lespecial
Moe’s Alley
Friday, March 20, 9pm
$25
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Photo: Toubab Krewe_courtesy_Royal_Artists_Group.jpg
Credit: courtesy Royal Artists Group
