Zozodinga

One of the founding fathers of Touareg ishumar music, or desert blues in European marketing-speak, Oumbadougou returns with his first new recording since Desert Rebel five years ago. The record is produced by, and features prominently, the ex-Mano Negra guitarist Daniel Jamet, along with a French drummer and two other Touareg guitarist-vocalists. Jamet’s slide and other electric guitar lines add welcome texture to the mix of acoustic guitars, percussion and clapping, helping the best tracks to achieve a certain loping, ululating excitement. Like many similar Touareg bands, this one does benefit from instrumental enhancement, because unadorned, and unaided by a sub-Saharan campfire live ambience, the songs can get monotonous, consisting of guttural uninflected lead vocals echoed by a droning male chorus. For Tamashek speakers, the music should be rendered more interesting by its lyrical content. ‘ I feel like a journalist, singing about daily life, the song’s composer is quoted as stating. The only numbers here for which translations are available are ten or 20 years old, with lyrics dealing in vague generic terms with the quest for revolution, peace, and the beauty of the desert. Given that Oumbadougou’s fellow desert rebels in Mali are experiencing the most cataclysmic reverse in modern history right now, this doesn’t seem to be Touareg musical journalism’s finest moment. Let’s hope for a rapid follow-up from the front line.