The last three artists for 1989 are all ones that I haven’t heard of (it’s possible I have heard something from them but just not known it). From the title of this one I was expecting either some kind of World Music, or maybe jazz. And again, it's kind of both.
Maal and Seck are both from Senegal, but since they are both guitarists and singers, its more melody driven compared to the talking drum of fellow Senegalese Youssou N’Dour. The way the tracks build on repetition and interweaving of simple melodic motifs brings to mind folk music elements, showing that roots and folk music really shares a lot of characteristics wordwide – the opening track Lam Tooro alone could equally be performed by the multiple Daves of Fairport Convention, for example. Muudo Hormo is a gentle groove enhanced by some xylophone (actually balafon, a similar wooden percussion instrument) from Jombo Kouyate.
It’s all quite gentle and laid-back, every bit as ambient as 808-State in its own way, but from a completely different musical angle. I have absolutely no idea what any of the tracks are about – they may be based on traditional tunes, I don’t know. The sense I get from the sound of the music is that they are vaguely devotional or celebratory, seeing the joy in small things. But, as I say, they could be scathing political commentary for all I know. There’s a certain similarity to some of the Brazilian music that we’ve had, and that’s perhaps not surprising since there’s bound to have been some West African cultural influence among the quilombo population. Who knew this project could be so educational?
The music is all very pleasant, and a little bit different, but it does tend to get a bit repetitive over the course of the whole album, especially if you listen to the re-issued extended album.
Comments
Post a Comment