If you've dipped into the stream of new music coming out of Mali and found it pleasant but not sufficiently kick-ass, this is the album for you. Amadou et Mariam, once billed as The Blind Couple of Mali, are just that, a blind husband and wife musical act. They both sing and he plays ripping electric guitar. They are Bambara, significant because Bambara music bears obvious resemblances to American blues. After many record releases--including at least two on the international market--the couple is hip to the substance and the marketing value of that connection, and here they exploit it with a vengeance. The punch and swing of Chicago blues is evident on many tracks, right from the boisterous opener "Chantez-Chantez." "Dans ce Monde Troublé" brings in a powerful backing horn section and other tracks feature organ and violin flavoring. But basically, this is no-nonsense, small ensemble, electric African blues, more urban than Ali Farka Touré or Boubacar Traoré, but still right up front with its Malian roots--in short, the most rocking African pop record I've heard in a long time.

Contributed by: Banning Eyre
Originally published in: Boston Phoenix