Ndiarigne

In his native Senegal, Batch Gueye performed mainly as a dancer, but since moving to Bristol, he has honed his skills as a musician and singer, and has been slowly gaining more recognition, playing at WOMAD, singing with Fofoulah and supporting Fatoumata Diawara on her recent tour. Ndiarigne is Gueye's first full album, on which he gives a good show of his abilities both as a singer and bandleader. The group manoeuvre from thoughtful pieces in praise of the Baye Fall saints (the Sufi sect to which Gueye belongs) to tracks clearly designed for a dance session, with the leader adding his unique voice to it all. There are some great performances from his band – an all-African line-up, recorded in Senegal with kora, xalam (lute) and backing vocals all standing out at various points throughout the album.

A few things do need to be ironed out here and there – some of the tracks feel a little repetitive and the album's changes in mood could perhaps be smoother. But these are small criticisms, and detract from the fact that this is an impressive debut album.