Beautiful Africa

"'Beautiful Africa' fører Rokia Traoré i nye retninger, men der er på ingen måde tale om en tandløs eller blankpoleret international popsatsning.At 'Beautiful Africa' har al den kant og nerve, man kan ønske sig, fremgår allerede af titelnummeret. Det er funky, men ikke et bestillingsarbejde fra Afrikas Turistforening. Traoré synger en klagesang for Congo, Elfenbenskysten, Guinea og nu også Mali. Afrikanske lande, hvor borgerkrige, kaos og inkompetente politikere sender naboer i struben på hinanden".

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"Fifth album puts the Malian on the African A-list ... She and producer John Parish have boosted her use of rock as the bed from which she can soar as close to Oumou Sangaré as possible - Seb Rochford's drumming gives songs such as Kouma an unavoidably non-traditional kick, and the guitar (primarily by the singer herself) have a crunch missing from her early recordings. Parish's work with PJ Harvey has made him the go-to guy for women who shed skins between albums, and this latest persona from Traoré suggests she refuses to accept any boundaries".