Mau Mau (band)

Mau Mau
Mau Mau live at Mazdapalace, Milan on June 29, 2006
Background information
Origin	Piedmont, Italy
Genres	Folk, world music
Years active	1991–present
Labels	EMI
Website	maumau.it
Members	Luca Morino Fabio Barovero Bienvenu Tatè Nsongan

Mau Mau is an Italian band from Turin. It was formed in 1991 as a continuation of the underground cult group I Loschi Dezi.

The band, which mixes African and Latin traditions, was formed in 1991 by Luca Morino and Fabio Barovero, from the Piedmont region of Italy, and Bienvenu Tatè Nsongan, from Cameroon. The band's name has a double meaning: it references the Kenyan Mau Mau uprising against British colonial rule, and, in the Piedmontese language, Mau Mau designates "people who come from afar".

The band released their first EP, Soma la macia (We are the scrub) in 1992. Sung in Piedmontese, the EP attracted the attention of Peter Gabriel, who invited them to record their first full album at his Real World Studios. The result was Sauta Rabel (Let's Jump, Let's Make Such a Row). It was followed by a tour of festivals, including appearances at the Palestine International Dance & Music Festival and the International Festival of Babylon in Iraq.

In 1994, Mau Mau returned to Real World Studios to record their second album, titled Bàss paradis (Low Paradise). They dedicated it to all people who suffered under colonialism. The album was released in quite a few European countries, as well as in Japan, and was followed by a tour numbering over 100 performances.

Their third album, Viva Mamanera, was released in 1996. It was recorded with Eric Sarafin in Los Angeles, Paris (including in the Paris Metro) and Turin. Viva Mamanera includes more electronic sounds than earlier releases, and was successful in Italy and in France.

In the summer of 1996 the band played to over seventy thousand people when they opened for Paolo Conte at the Paleo Festival in Nyon.