Residential Address: Africa Night's Food, Dance, and Storytelling at Sahara Lounge

Zoumountchi, with Ibrahim Aminou on kora, on Oct. 28 (photo by John Anderson)

If you don't know the lay of the land, the rusty sign for the Baptist church next door and the low-hanging brush might make you miss your turn into Sahara Lounge's gravel parking lot.

If the venue's vibe isn't already apparent from the wonderful folk art murals or righteously faded Black Lives Matter banner, the string of five or six A/C window units foreshadow both figurative and literal hot times inside. Every Saturday, the $12 door might actually be the best deal in town for music and the open buffet of spicy halal meatballs and chicken with vegan sides of rice and beans, all with Afro-Caribbean flavoring. These dishes are all personally prepared by the heart and soul of the lounge's long-running Africa Night, Ibrahim Aminou.

For nearly 13 years, the French-trained cook has been serving up variations of these dishes as a goodwill opener to the two sets of music he typically conducts and plays – with a middle slot filled by different artists every week. With food served at 7pm and bands kicking off at 7:30, the West African musician doesn't have much time to savor a meal. He swiftly exchanges his metaphorical chef's hat for a kora.

If Aminou's orature casts a spell, the 21-stringed African instrument, which he handcrafts, definitely serves as a magic wand. Seated as the opening Afro Jazz quartet, Aminou – whose lifelong music teachings and performance have taken him from his home country of Niger to France, Switzerland, New York, Michigan, and now Austin – greets the early patrons with his many stories. With the crowd listening quietly, Saturday night starts to feel a bit more like Sunday dinner, with the reverent head of the household leading grace.

"Every time I play with new musicians, I have to tell them what is the meaning of song, before I can teach them the song," Aminou says later, on Sahara's spacious yet cozy back patio. "The divinity of music says that you have to share the story of the music you want to play with somebody."

Photo by John Anderson

That divinity shines through in his tales and parables as much as the songs themselves. With the end of the dinnertime set, the Saturday night dynamic returns with a pulsing vengeance as Sly & the Family Stone shares time with Fela Kuti over the PA system. The evening's musical guests set up for the 9pm show, which can include anyone from Golden Dawn Arkestra to Hard Proof to Huerta Culture, or just a prime-time assembly of the Sahara Allstars.

Eileen Bristol – who co-owns the club with her son (and Golden Dawn bandleader) Topaz McGarrigle – pulls double duty as the bassist for the Africa Night house band, Zoumountchi.

"Sahara is a social club," she says. "People come here to socialize. They want to dance, but then they'll go out back and it's like a whole other scene. They'll come at 7pm and stay till 2am."

Asked about the meaning of his band name, Aminou explains through examples: "If you are my neighbor, and I say, 'How are you doing? How are the kids?' ... 'Zoumountchi.' If I say, 'I have some extra oranges, why don't you take some' ... 'Zoumountchi.'

"I am trying to promote that emotion to people."

With a revolving door of talent and guests from around the world, he has the means to do it. The 10-piece Zoumountchi takes the stage at 11pm and works every song, whatever the tempo, into a chorus of cadence between the musicians and crowd. Singing in a variety of languages, Aminou gets the audience to understand his intentions, both in word and dance, for hours. The band invites dancers onstage while carrying from one great solo to another in a physical and spiritual tour de force.

Even after Zoumountchi the band calls it a night, zoumountchi, the positive energy force that Aminou spoke of, remains a permanent fixture at Sahara Lounge.

Sahara Lounge hosts Africa Night every Saturday, with a free buffet served at 7pm and music from 7:30pm to 1am. This Saturday, Nov. 11, features the classic residency lineup of Afro Jazz, Sahara Allstars, and Zoumountchi.