Amadou and Mariam recently shared the stage with some of the hottest acts in pop music at the opening concert of the soccer World Cup, exposing the millions of viewers to their catchy, well-crafted music.
Welcome to Mali is not a new album, having first been released in 2008. It flew below my radar, which is why I am glad it has been rereleased – listening to it has been an experience of music as the universal language. The majority of the lyrics are in French, Bambara, Prul, Dogon, and Bamanan, but the music is so enjoyable that one doesn’t need to understand the words.
Amadou and Mariam are able to conjure up all sorts of images and emotions through their art; whether it’s thoughts of exotic Timbuktu or a bubbling sense of joy and exuberance, they’re Doing It Right. At no point does the album seem disjointed; it’s a clean, tight work, and one that deserves to be given much more exposure than what it’s been receiving.
The sound is unmistakably African, but with both European and Arabic influences present, Welcome to Mali shows that Amadou and Mariam more than understand ‘world music’ – they’ve taken it to another level. They have prepared a sonic feast, where fusion is never overstated. Nothing sounds out of place here.
Some of the highlight tracks include Sabali, Magossa, Je te Kiffe,Africa, Bozos, I Follow You, and Welcome to Mali.
Joining them on this brilliant album are exciting musical guests like Blur’s Damon Albarn (on Sabali and Ce n’est pas bon), K’naan (Africa) and Keziah Jones (Unissons nous), making Welcome to Mali a force to be reckoned with.
(And if you’re wondering about the shiny gold sunglasses they’re sporting in the album artwork, it’s because both Amadou and Mariam are blind, and the track Djama was recorded at the Blind Institute Bamako in Mali.)
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