Timbuktu

"Timbuktu is yet another brilliant addition to Sangaré's repertoire. On it, she interweaves familiar sounds from her long and distinguished body of work with fresh musical ideas. Lifelong friend and collaborator Mamadou Sidibé's ngoni, the ever-present lute accompanying Sangaré's voice, is as lyrical as ever, its lilting patterns providing a dynamic backdrop for Sangaré's lithe, golden voice. The distinct wailing of the dobro and slide guitar is new to her work, instruments brought into play by none other than Delgrès frontman and Timbuktu co-producer Pascal Danaë ... On Timbuktu, Oumou Sangaré continues to prove how much work she puts in to maintain her reputation as a musical force and yet how open she is to worthwhile sonic change. There's not a sound or note wasted".

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"'Timbuktu' is named after the legendary city, one sacked by Islamist insurgents a decade ago, and stands in for the political problems ongoing across west Africa. And although this album was written at her new house in Baltimore, when Sangaré got stuck there during lockdown, many of these tracks look to her home region of Wassoulou, whose sung heritage and stringed instruments she has turned into an international world music phenomenon. This activist and businesswoman flexes hard for her community's progress on Wassulu Don, but on Demissimw, a lonesome ballad about children affected by war, her sorrow is front and centre".

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"Fusing West African tradition with blues, folk and rock, ['Timbuktu'] is Sangaré's boldest and most ambitious album to date".

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"Just as Ali Farka Touré found a second wind collaborating with Ry Cooder, Sangaré has opened up new spaces in her customary sound, into which fit dobro and slide guitar (...), right next to the kamele n'ngoni of Mamadou Sidibé. Lyrically, she definitely feels the blues ... If you've never sampled Oumou Sangaré before, 'Timbuktu' is the perfect entrée, the one you won't need to feel your way into. Without making concessions, she's delivered her most accessible album yet, perhaps even her best".

"The music is still rooted in the sounds of her home in the Wassulu region of Mali, but there are subtle, international elements in the arrangements".