Tinariwen — Imidiwan: Companions

Anyone who considers "world music" a dirty word (and I'd put myself in that category) should check out this latest disc from Tinariwen. The Tuareg (a Berber group that live in Saharan north Africa) group are essentially an African blues band that mix electric guitars with traditional drums and lyrics sung in Tamashek.

If it all sounds a little to new age, it's not; Imidiwan is backpacking through the countryside to your pilates instructor's room at the resort. Grounding the whole thing, at least to western ears, are traditional verse, chorus, verse song structures that eschew any kind of prolonged jams that so often turn listeners off traditional music like this.

A DVD with a 30-minute doc of recording sessions and members of Tinariwen discussing their music and their role as representatives of the Touareg people is included in with Imidiwan. It's a bit long-winded, but the scenery and outdoor performance of "Imidiwan Afrik Temdam" more than make up for any shortcomings in the editing room.

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