Category: mali

NETTLE, KHAIRA ARBY, SWAY MACHINERY

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[Khaira Arby]

On Saturday March 5th, Nettle will perform at the Bell House in Brooklyn. Info. Nettle, flexible and growing, is currently a 5-piece. We’ve even started using words and a guitar – although not too much of either.

Malian singer Khaira Arby will headline. The event is a benefit for ASSOCIATION OF THE SAHEL TO AIDE DECENTRALIZED DEVELOPMENT (ASSADDEC), a collection of 71 women’s groups in north Mali, supporting women’s small business enterprises, HIV/AIDS awareness and more. Which is awesome. Also performing: The Sway Machinery and DJ Israel Soulico.

Here’s a nice clip of Khaira and her band performing on KEXP — note, at least three of her musicians are rocking WFMU stickers! A wise band with excellent taste.

TAMIKREST – SAHEL SPACES

800px-Sahel Map-Africa rough

[Sahel map, wikipedia]

 

Silence like stone’s insides:

[audio:Tamikrest-Aratane-n’adagh.mp3]

Tamikrest – Aratane N’Adagh

Empty and full, shame the album isn’t as special as this song. Ousmane Ag Mossa sings and plays guitar, picking his way through a night composed of uncertain pieces. Mali.

tamikrest 1274119056 crop 500x422

I found this song via Sahel Sounds, a blog whose author uses the phrase “Black Moor” a lot. There’s an intriguing post on something I was speaking with Benjamin from Akwaaba about just yesterday: bluetooth cellphone mp3 transfers. Non-internet, wireless filesharing that requires physical proximity… A lot of folks use cellphones for only that, no need for actual talk/text service. So as cellphones across Africa get used for music and video playback, recording, and transmission more than talking/SMSing, it makes sense that Christopher from Sahel Sounds assembles a cassette compilation of Music from Saharan Cellphones [mediafire] – downloadable as mp3s, of course… Also worth hearing is his ‘Sahelsounds promo CD ‘ – leaning more towards field recordings from around the Sahara.

ALLO BAMAKO / GAZA AUTO-TUNE

Mode Raw is blogging over at Dutty Artz! check his Gaza Thugs post on “auto-tune gun ballads” in Kingston, that mixtape is craziness.

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allo bamako

following the Mande Variations piece, here’s some more Malian music. I’m embedding this using a different ‘content delivery system’, let me know if this is an improvement. I think it’s easier to stream/pause?

[audio:Djelimady_Tounkara_Affair_Social.mp3]

Djelimady Tounkara – Affair Social

When my neighbor attempts to sing opera, I reach for this. 70s sweetness from Djelimady Tounkara & the Super Rail Band. It’s from a new label, Oriki, buyable.