Rokia Traore - Bowmboi
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CD Details
Artist: Rokia TraoreBrand: TRAORE,ROKIA
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2004-08-31
Music Label: Nonesuch
Soundtracks:
- M'Bifo
- Sara
- Kote Don
- Mariama
- Manian
- Deli
- Nienafing
- Kele Mandi
- Kanou
- Bowmboi
Music reviews of Bowmboi
Music Review: Depth of Emotion
Rating: 5 Stars
Most westerners who respond to African music are drawn by the infectious, joyful, hooky percussion. If that is the case, I would suggest looking elsewhere first. Make no mistake, those fabulous polyrhythms are part of this project. But this is not your standard "let's party" African disc. It is a mature work by a mature artist, running the gamut of the emotional spectrum. While it is often joyous, it is just as frequently dark, moody, and atmospheric, as likely to make you pause in melancholic nostalgia for a lost love as move your hips with exultation.
I am not sufficiently knowledgable of Malian music to state how traditional it actually is. (She actually brought Laurie Anderson to mind upon occasion.) The instrumentation, other than the tasteful, sparse introduction of a string quartet on some songs, is wholly of traditional regional instruments. She sings in her native tongue about things that are obviously of importance to her. While her voice is occasionally imperfect from a technical standpoint, it is laden with passion, and her vocals, especially the divine harmonies, are human and moving. Coupled with the unpredictable cadence and placement of her melodies, she fuses wonderfully with the music. I can't remember the last time I played a disc repeatedly as I have this one. It is a wonderful reminder to those of us in the west who have grown jaded by the sounds of teenagers pounding out predictable progressions with bar chords that there really are approaches to music that are entirely unexplored by us.
I have no reservations about recommending this disc. But make sure you know what you're getting into. If you're looking for a purely feel-good project, I would look elsewhere. But if you're looking for something with pathos and emotional range, I would give this a listen.
Description of Bowmboi
Malian singer-songwriter Rokia Traore is already a fast-rising star in Europe, where she has released two albums, Mouneissa and Wanita, to both critcal and popular acclaim. With her NOnesuch debut, Bowmboi, Traore is poised to captivate an entirely new audience in the U.S.; Time calls the album "mesmerizing, casting its spell with virtuoso vocals, rich textures, and startling diversity."Malian singer Rokia Traore attracted a lot of attention with her 1998 debut Mouneissa and the even better Wanita in 2000. Now the singer-songwriter returns with Bowmboi, an album filled with creative aspiration but still set within the framework of traditional Malian instrumentation. As with the past efforts, the singer is again accompanied by acoustic guitar, n'goni (African lute), kora harp and balafon (a buzzing marimba). But here the stripped-down songs are darker and more mature, creating an overall vibe that sensuously haunting, particularly when she adds polyphonic multi-track call-and-response vocals. Amidst these earthy arrangements, the Kronos Quartet joins in for "Manian" and "Bowmboi." Having a western and modern classical feel, the music is a departure that nonetheless works because Traore matches their rhythms while staying within her creative vision. Indeed, her singing in her native Bamanan is the cornerstone to the album, soaring high and erupting into cadenzas or riding long wavering lines that shimmer with passion. ?-Tad Hendrickson
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