Frogtoon Music

Amassakoul (Album) by Tinariwen

Artist Biography For Tinariwen

Tinariwen In Tuareg "ⵜⵏⵔⵓⵏ" From Tamasheq Berber Tenere The Desert Is A Tuareg Music Group Originating From Tessalit In The Adrar Des Ifoghas A Region Shared Between Southern Algeria And Northern Mali. The Band's Fifth Album Tassili Released In 2011 Won The Award For Best World Music Album At The 54th Grammy Awards. Formed In 1982 In Strikingly Unusual Circumstances For A Musical Ensemble Tinariwen Blend Ancient Musical Traditions With Radical Contemporary Politics. Despite Severe Natural And Man-Made Hardships Young Kel Tamashek Exiles Continued Performing The Traditional Music Of Their Tuareg Forebears In The Southern Sahara While Simultaneously Fighting Against The Government Of Mali. Forced To Seek An Alternative To Starvation And Repression In Drought-Stricken Mali Many Of These Young Nomads Hoped To Attain A Better Life By Striking Up What Proved To Be An Uneasy Alliance With Libya. The Hoped-For Aid In Their Struggle With The Mali Government Failed To Materialize But In The Meantime Some Of The Rebels Had Evolved A Form Of Music That Kept Alive The Music Of Their Forefathers While Simultaneously Communicating Radical Political Messages. This Music Is Known As Tishoumaren Music Of The Ishumar The Unemployed . Usually Performed By Groups Of 30 And More Instrumentalists And Singers Tishoumaren Acknowledges Contemporary Western Music Especially Rock As Well As Other Music Forms Prevalent In The Middle East While Never Losing Touch With The Original Ancient Form. In Some Instances Players Not Only Adapt Traditional Forms But Also Substitute Modern Instruments For The Traditional Lutes Flutes And One-String Violins. The Electric Guitar In Particular Has Become Popular Even Though Circumstances Demand The Availability Of Portable Generators. The Name Chosen By This Band Tinariwen Means Empty Places Thus Maintaining A Further Link To The Vast Desert Regions Of The Southern Sahara. The Musicians Include Said Ag Ayad Alhassane Ag Touhami Eyadou Ag Leche Ibrahim Ag Alhabib Abdallah Ag Lamida Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni And Bassa Walet Abdoumou. The Music Itself Is Spare And Haunting An Aural Reflection Of Those Same Open Spaces. The Lyrics Of Their Songs Perhaps More Accurately Termed Sung Poetry Carry Outspoken Political Thought That Draws Attention Not Only To Repression In Mali But Also To The Enforced Exile Of Many And The Continuing Struggle For Self-Determination Of The Tuareg Nomads. Song Structures Are Many And Varied And Include Elemental Call-And-Response Patterns As Well As To Western Ears Discordant Notes That Call To Mind The Blue Notes Favoured By Western Blues And Jazz Players Overlaid Upon A Solid Four-Beat Rhythmic Foundation That Is Itself Uncommon To The Region Although Compatible With Much Western Popular Music. Tinariwen's First Recordings Were To Cassette Sales And Even Possession Of Which Carried Harsh Penalties In Mali And Algeria. In The Early 00s Availability Of Albums Encouraged More Widespread Awareness Of The Music And Its Underlying Political Messages.

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Frogtoon Music Album Info: Amassakoul

From BBC Product Description
The Songs Of Tinariwen Mourn The Passing Of The Epic Golden Age Of The Saharan Tribes While Endeavoring To Map Out A Future For The Generations Who Must Survive Beyond It And Live With The Modern World. Recorded With The Help Of Solar Energy In The Studios Of Radio Tisdas The Tamashek Station Of Kidal The New Album 'Amassakoul' Immobilizes Their Wandering Music At Long Last.
BBC Review
This Second Album By The Leading Touareg Desert Blues Band In Mali Arrives At A Time When Many Will Be Suffering From The Winter Blues. If You Didn't Make It To The Festival In The Desert But Enjoyed The Live Album You'll Be Happy To Discover That This Music Has A Similar Power To Transport You To The Heats Of The Sahara. There's Even A Studio Version Of The Song "Aldhechen Manin" Which First Appeared On That Wonderfully Atmospheric Compilation. In The Same Way That The Experience Of Displacement And Disenfranchisement Has Produced A Vibrant Rebel Music Culture Among The Saharawi People Of Western Sahara Tinariwen's Roots Lie In The Touareg Rebellion And Subsequent Diaspora Of Toureg People Which Took Place After Mali's Independence. Tinariwen Were The First Group To Adapt Traditional Touareg Music Onto Electric Guitars When They Began Making Music In 1979. They Are Still Led By Original Member Ibrahim Ag Alhabib Who Has The Most Distinctive Vocal And Guitar Style Of The Current Male Soloists. Four Of The Six Other Musicians Represented On "Amassakoul" Have Joined The Group Since Their 2001 Debut "The Radio Tisdas Sessions".And This Second Album Is A More Polished And Varied Affair With Less Massive Reverb And A Good Deal More Studio Tinkering On Most Songs. As Before "Amassakoul" Is Dominated By Distinctively Gentle Rocking Rhythms Which Emulate The Gait Of A Camel In All Its Moods Call And Response Vocals Gnarled But Simple Guitar Lines Ululations And Handclaps. New Elements Include The Occasional Use Of Flute On Tracks Like "Alkhar Dessouf" And The Closing Vocal Drone Of "Assoul". There's Also More Percussive Detail Than Before Best Heard On "Eh Massina Sintadoben" And The Vocal Patterns Of "Araouane" Seem To Show The Influence Of Jamaican-Style Chatting Or Rapping. Otherwise This Is Pretty Much The Tinariwen Fans Will Know And Love. The Shock Of The New That Made Their First Album So Appealing Isn't As Strong But Just As Nomads Never Stand Still They Are Moving On Musically. --Jon Lusk