Orchestra Gold

Orchestra Gold is an Oakland-based psychedelic afro-rock band centered on the voice of Malian singer Mariam Diakité and guitarist Erich Huffaker. The project grew from a chance meeting in Bamako, Mali in 2005 and a first recording session in Ségou; after Diakité relocated to the Bay Area in 2018, the pair assembled a full band that fuses West African devotional traditions with gritty electric psychedelic rock, funk, and soul. Their sound pairs hypnotic Bambara vocals with swinging rhythms, a brass section, and cosmic guitar, delivered by a five- to six-piece live group. Their 2025 self-released album DAKAN earned a four-star review and cover-mount feature in Songlines Magazine, charted in KEXP's Global Top 10, and followed a run of festival appearances including Newport Folk Festival, Pickathon, Hardly Strictly Bluegrass, SXSW, and Joshua Tree Music Festival.