Track Listing

1. M'Bifo
2. Sara
3. Kote Don
4. Mariama
5. Manian
6. Deli
7. Nienafing
8. Kele Mandi
9. Kanou
10. Bowmboi

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #17189 in Music
• Brand: TRAORE,ROKIA
• Released on: 2004-08-31
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .26 pounds

Album Description
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."

Amazon.com
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

Customer Reviews

Beautiful and Moving
I have'nt heard an album this good in a long time, I saw Roika featured on a documentry but didnt pay attention to her music.She is an extraordinary artist who despite living in the western world has not traded in her roots.

The album has a spiritual atmosphere,I didnt find it dark ,it has an almost ancient feel about it.I loved its bare sound it gave her vocals room to move whilst still having some truly original and experimental beats and noises.

It was very well produced, I was hard pressed to find one song I didnt like, my favourites were M'bifo,Manian,Deli,Deli is one of the most incredible songs on the album.

Most african albums I was raised on are jovial and upbeat this was a wonderful change,I dont think you even have to like african music to love this.I heard the first song on the album in a bookshop and was crying.

If you want to dance about, this album wont be to your liking but if you like a bare original acoustic sound with amazing vocals you will love this.

GENTLY PUSHING THE ENVELOPE WITHOUT FORGETTING HER ROOTS...
That's how I view this recording -- I respectfully differ with one of the reviewers below. It seems to me that Rokia is holding firmly to the traditions on which her music is based -- the experimentation that is present on this disc is a natural product of her growth as an artist. The instrumentation that marked her first two albums is intact, dominated by the balofon, n'goni, acoustic guitar and percussion -- the 'stretching out' that she does by adding some vocal complexities here and there, as well as the incredible talents of the Kronos Quartet on two tracks, serves the music well. The strings are surprisingly effective and unobtrusive -- partly because of the abilities of the players (The Kronos Quartet has built quite a reputation over the years) and partly because of the arrangements (by Stephen Prutsman).

As far as the 'unusual rhythms' present, one of the things that drew me to African music in the first place was the amazing polyrhythms -- rather than playing against each other, they combine and build into a whole that is truly 'greater than the sum of the parts'.

Rokia's voice is in fine form -- that instrument and her songwriting ability have been the foundation of her success. I can't see this album doing anything to erode that reputation.

I've only had this for 24 hours -- but I've been listening to it almost constantly during that time. It's that good. If you enjoyed her previous efforts, PLEASE give this a listen -- it's not as far removed from those works as the other review seemed to indicate.

Depth of Emotion
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.