"Devil Woman"

This adventurous quintet out of Asheville, North Carolina, has set a new standard for fusions of rock ‘n’ roll and West African music.  With a few exceptions—like Mali’s Amadou Bagayoko and Lobi Traore—not many Africans who attempt the genre have the necessary depth and nuance in their rock playing.  And as for Americans playing African music, the obstacles are obvious and plentiful.  The fact that these musicians have studied variously in Mali, Guinea and Ivory Coast, including a band trip to Conakry, in no way guarantees that they should play West African music as well as they do.  When Justin Perkins rips into a kamelengoni (12-string version of what is usually a 6-string harp) break on the song “Bani,” it’s hard to believe that you are not hearing a young turk from Mali’s Wassoulou country tearing lose with his hottest riffs.  His kora playing is also quite good, particularly on the band’s version of the traditional Manding song “Salimou.”

Percussionists Luke Quaranta and Teal Brown distinguish themselves, going for broke on the multi-section, drums-only piece “Asheville to Abidjan,” but also grounding the other songs in solid grooves, tastefully ornamented with djembe and other African percussion.  But guitarist Drew Heller is the key to the band’s successful sound.  He has mastered the fleet, flatpick phrasing associated with the Malian electric guitarist Zani Diabate, and countless followers.  Better still, he has integrated that with solid, confident rock bona fides.  His solo on “Djarabi” is just one case in point, full of riffling arpeggios and sure-footed melodic flourishes, but all done in an African manner, cool and causal, never with an air of showing off. 

Nine of these ten songs are arrangements of traditional songs, mostly Manding, Wassoulou, and Bambara riffs, but none of them sound like any version you know.  The musicians have made this music their own with inventive, natural sounding arrangements that never lag or fall back on clichés.  Their one original track, “Hang Tan,” is a perky, film-noirish romp that includes another dynamic kamelengoni solo from Justin Perkins.  The decision to include no singing on the album was both brave and wise.  When Americans add English lyrics to African music, or sing in African languages, a line is crossed and a whole new set of compromises must be breached.  By avoiding all those dilemmas and putting the focus on their excellent musicianship, Toubab Krewe come out on top in a very tricky undertaking. 

Contributed by: Banning Eyre for www.afropop.org