Terakaft
Akh Issudar
World Village (www.worldvillagemusic.com)

Expect Tarakaft to hypnotize you. The title track "Akh Issudar" showcases a rolling hallmark vocal lead with call-and-response chorus, compelling handclap percussion, and bountiful guitar leads that allow space, lots of space, for the bluesy improvisation that has come to make Saharan desert music both familiar and frequently disorienting. For many listeners, the moods of these songs create more impact than their background narratives. That's fortunate when, as here, the liner note lyrics are written in phonetic Tamasheq. But no matter. The 14 songs on Akh Issudar require no translation to be enjoyed.

Tuareg-influenced music always takes me to a good map, providing a useful reminder of the Western Sahara's daunting size and the expansive territory through which the ancestors of these 21st century musicians traveled. Akh Issudar presents songs that reflect the unique desert life of the Tuareg. It evokes the ancient romantic side and the inevitable tensions that arise when those nomads move within and across the modern nation states of Algeria, Libya, Malia and Niger. Terakaft draws membership from the renowned extended musical ensemble Tinariwen and includes the vocals and guitars of Kedou Ag Ossad, Liya Ag Ablil (aka Diara), and Sanou Ag Ahmed. Issa Dicko (vocals) and Rhissa Ag Ogham (vocals, bass) round out the musicians. While well steeped in the poetry and gut-stringed instruments of its ancestors, this group also knows its way around a Fender guitar and pop music of Africa, Europe and America. This is a marvelous by-product of globalization. - Dick Dorsett

CD available from cdRoots

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