Muzikifan,
Album Review
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Aja Salvatore of Kanaga System Krush is going great guns finding wonderful Malian music that has not been reprocessed for the French disco, the Palooza festival audience or the aged rocker collab scene. Instead he brings us the pure sound of Wassoulou in a shimmering hour of percussion and vocals. Taga is the leader and plays a small high-pitched djembe, the Sogonikun, which is better, he explains, for entertaining bush spirits. There is also the regular hourglass-shaped djembe accompanying him, played by his lifelong friend Yakoub Sidibe, as well as a big bass drum -- the Bari Dunun, which also originated in Wassoulou -- played by hand on one side and a curved drumstick on the higher-pitched side. A fourth cylinder drum is also played with a stick. The lead singer is "Tu" Sinayoko and the response vocals are by Sita Diarra. With this modest ensemble they pack a powerful punch. I guessed Taga was a member of the hunter clan from his headgear on the cover; he is also a traditional medicine man and healer as well as a farmer. As lads he and Yakoub liked to beat on powdered milk cans, then took up ngoni but when their village lacked a drummer and had to hire one, Taga was encouraged by the elders to get serious and study the instrument. His repertoire includes traditional as well as original songs. There is a complex interplay between the rhythms. The song lyrics and even the rhythms used are explained in the liner notes. Not only is Sidibe a master of the traditions, he is a virtuoso on the Sogonikun djembe. 02/01/12
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