Reviews

C’est La Vie

Khaled

Many listeners admired the king of rai’s last couple of albums, notably Liberté, which heard his characterful voice unchained from...

Reviewed in issue June/2013

Nomad

Bombino

There's a growing trend for West African acts to court global popularity by employing Anglo-American producers to give them a...

Reviewed in issue June/2013

Zoom

Rachid Taha

Rachid Taha's first album in four years is not quite in the same bracket as Muhammad Ali's retrieval of the...

Reviewed in issue June/2013

Dur-Dur, Vol 5

Dur-Dur Band

It looks to me like this decade is seeing a huge growth in sales of retro world music albums, which...

Reviewed in issue June/2013

Sarawoga

Oliver Mtukudzi

Dedicated to his son Sam, who died in a tragic car accident, the Zimbabwean veteran’s latest album opens with the...

Reviewed in issue June/2013

The Rough Guide to African Disco

VARIOUS ARTISTS

Bursting out of 70s America, with a white-suited Travolta at the helm, disco called the world to dance. Its funk,...

Reviewed in issue June/2013

Talé

Salif Keita

Baaba Maal did it with 2009's Television. Amadou & Mariam followed last year with Folila. Now Salif Keita has joined...

Reviewed in issue Apr/May/2013

Teranga! Senegal

VARIOUS ARTISTS

That Senegal has an acoustic singer-songwriter scene (as opposed to a traditional music scene) has been apparent for at least...

Reviewed in issue Apr/May/2013

Sur la Route des Caravanes

Les Tambours de Brazza

The group’s name suggests they are a drum and dance ensemble. But Les Tambours de Brazza are much more than...

Reviewed in issue Apr/May/2013

Wakukaya

Ashimba

This is another fine example of how Scandinavian musicians are collaborating with African musicians in professional studio conditions and producing...

Reviewed in issue Apr/May/2013