Nomad Collective is a London-based group mixing Cuban rhythms with funk, rock guitars, heavy grooves and jazz improvisation. The band features musicians from Cuba, Iran and the UK; Nomad Collective mix genres and grooves to create a sound which is uniquely their own.
Founded by Owen Snider (Guitar), Mehdi Karimi-Langroodi (Drums) and Josh Barber (Bass) in the wee hours of a cold winter’s night sometime in 2010, the trio began work on writing and arranging an albums worth of raw material. As the album took shape and the arrangements fell in to place, they called upon the experience and talents of some of London’s finest musicians from all corners of the music scene.
‘The rhythms are the glue that our arrangements were based around’, writes drummer Mehdi Karimi-Langroodi. ‘We have always loved Cuban music, especially rumba, and this project was a chance for us to mix these styles with the music that’s home for us, funk, rock, jazz etc…’
Produced by Josh Barber (Bass), the sound of the album (Soundscapes of a Bedouin Rudeboy) is a mash up of the diverse influences they had growing up. Hendrix, Dilla, Snarky Puppy, the Tuareg blues sounds of Tinariwen, Cinematic Orchestra, Stevie Wonder the list goes on.
After the success of their launch at Cargo to a packed out venue,featuring many of the guest musicians from the album, the Nomads have been busy gigging around the festival circuit spreading the good word of their debut album ‘Soundscapes of a Bedouin Rudeboy’, with their exciting live set.