Jalikebba Kuyateh and the Toubabs - Jalikebba and the Toubabs

Band / Artist: Jalikebba Kuyateh and the Toubabs
Year: 2005
Genre: World, Spoken Word., African, Indian, Folk

My Review:
Swedish folk, Classical violin, Indian tabla, and African kora. All together. God. Damn. I like it a whole lot.

Here's a breakdown of the members

Two members of the group, Jalikebba and Haruna were born into griot families. Griots [ /grēˈō/ ] are a social caste who perform traditional music and poetry, jaliyaa, carrying on the oral tradition from antiquity.

Tommy is an Austrian performer and composer who specializes in the Indian tabla and other percussive instruments. Violinist Sandra and vocalist Kasja are both Swedes.

Jalikebba Kuyateh was born and raised in Gambia, and is a skilled kora player who has performed with many groups in Africa. He is in demand for festivals, weddings, and ceremonies. He also teaches music workshops both at the museum and abroad.

Currently, Jalikebba is the lead performer at the Tanji Village Museum in Tanji, Gambia.  The museum presents and preserves the traditional culture and the natural history of Gambia. These tunes were recorded live at the Tanji Village Museum, January 29, 2005.

So they make this neat melded sound, that seems like a much more melodic version of Bjork's weirder music, just infused with a ton of African influences. Listen to a track or two, and I'll bet it grows on you.

Jalikebba Kuyateh and the Toubabs - Jalikebba and the Toubabs