HOLLY CULP
Arts Editor

After gallivanting across the Earth for the past month or so, Bedouin Soundclash is back in their home and native land and are ready to embark on their North American tour of their most recent album Light the Horizon.

“Two days after the album launch we promptly left for the complete opposite end of the Earth,” said drummer Sekou Lumumba, the newest member of the band. “We went to China, Shang-Hai specifically. Then we did Australia, India and then the U.K.”

The band had the opportunity to experience the variety of exotic locales on the tour.

“Talk about your culture shock,” laughed Lumumba.

As far as the band’s reception went from place to place, the U.K. and Australia were the most energetic crowds, with China offering a memorable turn out.

“We were there playing the World Expo in China, representing Canada at the Canadian pavilion,” said Lumumba. “There were a lot of Chinese people there to see our shows, but there were a lot of Canadians too. Chinese audiences are usually really reserved, they don’t really dance or groove; they kind of just sit there and clap at the end of the song. But the first two rows were Canadians who were up and dancing and singing to every song, so they got some of the Chinese people to dance. The organizers were saying that they’d never seen that happen. It was a surprise for us.”

As it goes for nearly every band touring over large distances, the group ran into a little trouble while touring in India.

“We shot a video in India and the director and his crew were out the night before scouting out locations,” said Lumumba. “There are parts of India that saw the succes of Slumdog Millionaire with none of it improving the lives of the people in that region. And now when they see people come in from the West with cameras they want to make their end off of it. So the director and his crew got tossed into jail for a night by the local police until they paid their way out.”

The release of Light the Horizon marked a few important things for the band. It was released on the band’s own new label, Pirate Blend Records and it is also the first record to feature Lumumba. Overall the release indicates a new chapter for the band.

“Whenever you bring someone new into something that’s been active as long as Bedouin has it’s going to morph, it’s going to sound different,” said Lumumba. “Right before I joined, the band was kind of in flux and they didn’t even know if they were going to continue with Bedouin. They didn’t want to be like, ”˜Well, we have to put out a new record because we have to.’ You want to put out a record because you want to and you believe in it.”

In regards to how the band’s show has evolved with the latest record, Lumumba was excited to announce that, because of their extensive touring, their set is nearly immaculate.

“We’ve been getting a lot tighter,” he said. “The band sounds great and we can stop on a dime. We have some really cool projections and videos. It’s going to be a really visually stimulating show.”

Bedouin Soundclash play Louis on Friday Nov. 26