The Algerian singer/songwriter/guitarist Souad Massi grew up in a poor Muslim household in a suburb of Algiers. The country’s civil war made guitar lessons for the young woman difficult, but she used the curfew to her advantage, seeking out music that captured her imagination and strumming along with it. She began her career fronting the Algerian political rock band Atakor, who were influenced by Led Zeppelin and U2. She left her country and moved to Paris following a series of death threats in response to the band’s political lyrics and rabble-rousing popularity. Her music, which prominently features the acoustic guitar, now displays Western musical influences such as rock, country, and the Portugese fado, but also incorporates oriental musical influences and instruments like the oud. Her three solo albums have been personal rather than political in nature, expanding on themes of love and loss.

Presented by the University Musical Society, www.ums.org.

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