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KG Omulo: Ayah Ye!: Moving Train
A synergy of funk, rock, reggae and traditional African sounds from this inventive, young singer/songwriter. -
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Mamadou Diabaté: Courage
Mamadou Diabate, the kora master, takes a fresh look at Mali instrumental music with his new CD Courage. -
Various Artists: The Kankobela of the Batonga, Vol. 2
Mysterious melodies from a disappearing thumb piano tradition of Southern Africa. -
Kiran Ahluwalia: Aam Zameen: Common Ground
Indo-Canadian Songwriter Combines Folk Poetry with African Rock, Jazz and more -
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Sona Jobarteh: FASIYA
West African female kora virtuoso releases an album full of grace, warmth, and passion. -
Sia Tolno: My Life
Kissi singer releases a strong second album full of pop-infused star power over songs of strife and triumph. -
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Guelewar: Halleli N Dakarou
Re-released and remastered live CD from this 80's experimental Senegambian outfit. -
Tinariwen: Tassili
Touareg desert legends return with an offering that is meandering, sorrowful and proud. -
Los Rakas: Chancletas y Camisetas Bordada
Oakland/Panamanian rappers -call it "Panabay"-- return with good results. -
Cheikh Lo: Jamm
The unique Senegalese singer and multi-instrumentalist crafts an eclectically excellent record. -
David Rudder: Random Notes
Calypsonian David Rudder returns with an album that covers various styles with excellent results.
Ethiopia's most intriguing young singer, Ejigayehu "Gigi" Sibabaw has never sounded this good on record. Her eponymous international debut on Palm Pictures in 2001 set her flowing, devotional and love songs in a jazz-pop context with help from the likes of Wayne Shorter and Pharoah Sanders, and production by Bill Laswell. This group--also produced by Laswell--goes for a more organic sound long on acoustic atmospherics and gently rolling percussion, much of it tabla by world club maverick Karsh Kale.
The music here is textured and elegant, complimenting rather than crowding Gigi's searing, evocative voice. "Bati Bati" opens the set in a spiritual mode, with Gigi blending timbers with a saxophone, a staple of Ethiopian pop. Some of the melodies in these ten songs echo tracks on Gigi's earlier albums--her 1998 release, One Ethiopia, the album that caught Chris Blackwell's ear, is available now on Stern's--but here, personal and folkloric airs are transformed anew. "Alesema," a melodious folk song, finds Gigi's vocal floating on a bubbling bed of plucked strings and light percussion. The most rhythmically driving tracks split the difference between ritual pulse and chant and ambient club groove, but it's Gigi's confidence as a singer that makes this production excel. She shifts easily from a whispering purr to a full-throated wail, and in the process, a vivid and alluring personality emerges.
Revised and expanded from review that first appeared in the Boston Phoenix.
Contributed by Banning Eyre
