Critiques CD: Amadou & Mariam | Folila

The husband-and-wife musical team of Amadou Bagayoko and Mariam Doumbia, arguably Mali’s most recognized musical exports of late, clearly aim for North American shores with their latest grab-bag of songs, poised to bring their West African rhythms and killer mix of blues, rock and pop to many more people. Peppering the album with a slew of guest collaborators – members of TV On The Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Scissor Sisters, as well as Santigold, Theophilius London and Amp Fiddler – Amadou’s traditional-meets-Hendrix guitar trickery underlays each driving track, the bumps and grinds provided by djembe and doumdoum hand drums. Foreshadowing the recent political upheaval in their homeland, Amadou & Mariam sing of democracy and social change across their continent in this musical tour de force.