Akal

Atri N’Assouf is Tamashek for ‘the star of the desert’ – a bold claim given how many great Touareg desert blues bands have appeared out of the Sahara in the footsteps of Tinariwen. Between most of them there is a close interconnection and so it is here: main man Rissa Ag Wanaghli spent formative years in the Libyan refugee camps with members of Tinariwen, including Abdallah ag Alhousseyni, who guests on the album. These close links make it difficult for even the most discerning reviewer to grade the growing number of releases by Touareg bands, when they all follow such a similar template. On what objective critical basis can one prefer, say, Tinariwen to Toumast, or Tamikrest to Atri N’Assouf, when they all sound so great? There are differences, but they’re mostly of the subtlest nuance. Atri N’Assouf’s debut has a slicker sound than the dirtier end of raw Touareg blues, presumably the influence of the French musicians, keyboardist Jean-Philippe Rykiel (who has played on landmark albums by Youssou N’Dour, Salif Keita et al) and, the Parisian percussionist and scene-maker Plume, who also produced the album. Secondly, this is Touareg blues with a distinctly upbeat feel, and a reading of the translated lyrics reveals a proud celebration of Tamashek culture rather than the angry exploration of the problems of draught, famine and oppression that preoccupies some of their peers. But these are matters of degree. If you’re a fan of Tinariwen and you can’t get enough of Touareg guitar music, then you’ll love Atri N’Assouf.