Reviews
So Kono
Salif Keita was supposed to have stopped recording. The singer-songwriter, nicknamed the ‘African Caruso’ and the ‘Golden Voice of Mali’,...
Reviewed by Jane Cornwell in issue: May/2025
Sunshine Music
ALA.Ni is a west London-born, Paris-based singer, songwriter and composer of Grenadian heritage whose debut 2016 album You & I...
Reviewed by Jane Cornwell in issue: October/2025
A Touma
Little more than six months ago, Ballaké Sissoko released Djourou, a kora album of glorious hybridity, rooted in ancient griot...
Reviewed by Nigel Williamson in issue: December/2021
Gagner l'Argent Français
Malian singer Mamani Keita made her name in electro-roots music with her collaboration with French musician Marc Minelli on the...
Reviewed by Rose Skelton in issue: October/2011
WinterFolk
Christmas albums are like buses – you wait for ages then a whole fleet comes along. Yet few Yuletide sets...
Reviewed by Tim Cumming in issue: Jan/Feb/2018
Synthetic Hearts Part II
Last year I gave Synthetic Hearts by Asanda Lusaseni Mvana (aka Msaki) and Tubatsi Mpho Moloi, four stars – and...
Reviewed by Nigel Williamson in issue: September/2024
Out of Many: 50 Years of Reggae Music
Marking the 50th anniversary of Jamaican independence, this compilation is named after the island’s motto, ‘Out of Many,’ Drawing on...
Reviewed by Neil Foxlee in issue: Nov/Dec/2012
Away From My Window
Hailing from Aberdeenshire, Iona Fyfe is one of Scotland's finest young ballad singers. With Fyfe's art rooted deeply in the...
Reviewed by Billy Rough in issue: July/2018
Chewing the Fat
There are ambitious debut albums and there is Chewing the Fat. In this first solo record, London-based Irish violinist James...
Reviewed by Tim Woodall in issue: April/2018
Keep Me Waiting
If your tastes run to traditional bluegrass and folk music with a nod to contemporary Americana, you'll find Chicago-based Big...
Reviewed by Doug Deloach in issue: November/2017
