Tinariwen: Emmaar (Anti- Records) Rating: 8 (out of 10).
Due to ongoing political instability in their northern Mali homeland Tuareg desert rockers Tinariwen recorded their latest album, Emmaar, at a custom studio in Joshua Tree, California just north of the Coachella festival site in Indio/Palm Springs.
The band, more than a little familiar with an unsettled lifestyle, has lost none of its considerable power moving their music into exile. The tunes are grounded in Tuareg tradition with electric guitars feeding off ancient desert drone rhythms.
Currently touring in Europe, Tinariwen return to North America in April and will perform in Seattle at the Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall on April 14.
New CD releases
Feb. 11
Band of Horses — Acoustic at the Ryman (Live); Tinariwen — Emmaar.
Feb. 18
William Fitzsimmons — Lion.
Feb. 25
Beck — Morning Phase; Neneh Cherry — Blank Project; St. Vincent — St. Vincent; The Notwist — Close to the Glass; Wild Beasts — Present Tense.
March 4
Drive-By Truckers — English Oceans; Kimono Kult — Hiding In The Light (Band led by John Frusciante & Omar Rodríguez-López); Martina McBride — Everlasting (Covers album); Real Estate — Atlas; Rick Ross — Mastermind.
