Music in Exile

This group's sound reminds me a little of Ali Farka Toure. I really like this album.

Really enjoyed this one. I could not understand what they were saying, but does that really matter in music? Every song was fantastic.

Afrorock

The band has an interesting background story, I like songs 1, 8, 2, and 3.

This is a breath of fresh air in a very predominantly white-european list. I enjoyed it but couldn't shake the feeling that it was here as a diversity token. Credit where it's due, I'll most likely listen to it again

Weirdly fun even though you don't understand anything

me gusto mas la segunda escucha. volvere a escuchar. la primera fue en el consum esperando a q me hiciesen un poke la espera se me hizo eterna

Excellent

Interesting

Nice morning vibes on this one. Will never listen to it again but if I run into it again I’ll be like oh yeah this album. 2.5. Stars

Music was excellent, lyrics had nice movement to it but not understanding it didnt hit the same, will definitely listen to this again though. really a 3.5

Touré de force

That is some fine guitar playing and beautiful vocals. I'll definitely listen again.

I really could listen to this all day. A little more bass-heavy than Ali Farka Touré, but just as hypnotic. (And when it was over Spotify gave me a song they did with Iggy Pop)

Glad I got Ali Farka Touré a few days ago to be able to put this one in context. Really good stuff and a good lesson in world history too.

The beautiful thing about music is that it can bypass language barriers. The blues playing on this album is pretty incredible. It's so interesting how this rockabilly sound turned out with the influences of the Niger River sound. There's a grooving dance vibe throughout the album, a long with rock and blues elements obviously. The instrumentals stick to meat and potatoes bass and guitar, the drums really stand out as being traditionally African though, complete with multi-rhythmic drum grooves and all. The vocals on Wayei are absolutely spellbinding. This album features a lot of chant-style vocals and call-response vocals featured in more traditional African folk music. The acoustic cuts are pretty in their own way, and some of them are for sure a little stronger than the others. Overall a pretty enjoyable blues-world tinged rock album with VERY cool drum/vocal/guitar riffs. Would've liked to see a tad bit more traditional folk instrumentation throughout though.

This is why I joined this. An album and artist that I've never heard of...and it's going to be on heavy rotation on my headphones for a while. In the mix, there's african themes (obvs) and proper Deep South blues. Great stuff

Rv/g

my favourite karaoke album

J'avais bien aimé cet album du Mali quand j'etais tombé dessus il y a 10 ans. Des rhythmes qui feelent instables et des melodies presque atonales, pas familier pour les oreilles occidentales, mais ça reste bien ancré dans les codes du rock et blues, avec la vibe de band, les back vocals à l'unisson, les turnover blues (genre le début de Nick), la guit électrique. Une nouvelle écoute aujourdhui permet de remarquer que cetait pas si hot, quelques performances et tones qui laissent un peu à désirer, mais les good vibes sont encore là <3

Disaster

Wonderful African music

Like listening to the Black Keys in French. Would definitely listen to more by them.

Excellent.

i am so glad this website gives me the chance to hear albums i wouldve never found or thought of listening to. this has some of the most beautiful guitar work and the overall vibe is simply great

3,3

First listen to Songhoy Blues. Really dug the music. Didn't understand the lyrics due to the language barrier. Enjoyed this listen. This is something I do like about this list is the exposure to music that I may not otherwise would have heard about from around the world.

Me not likey

What a fun album! Its albums like this that make me love this project. I'd never have heard this otherwise Very enjoyable 4 ⭐️

I really liked it. Like Blues meets Fela Kuti

a world album with influences from blues, gotta say these albums are the reason why i do this. honestly could do with more african influence as it half felt like the record label wanted to turn it down but nevertheless a vibe

A really cool album, gotta love stuff like this which is different from everything else on this list.

This is really cool. Great production and love the overall sound. The only thing I can really say against it is that it's musically very similar across tracks. Still a bop though, and quite hypnotic at times. Favourite tracks: Soubour, Irgana, Al Hassidi Terei, Wayei, Kashmir.

Songhoy Blues—who? Never heard of it. Blues from Timbuktu? OK...I'm ready. And then something like this. That's awesome...blues with lots of African influences, or vice versa. It grooves like crazy. This album alone was worth the site and the time it took. Of course, this is nothing new...combining traditional Western music with African roots. But they performit with an energy that automatically transfers to the listener. Brilliant.

Now, this is a discovery, this is the music I want to dance on, despite the (probably? Couldn't find the lyrics) sombre message, or, likely, because of it. I think, I need to dig into desert blues now. Loved Soubour, Al Hassidi Terei and Desert Melody.

This was great. So glad to learn about this band.

Petit metier favorite song ✨

Really enjoyed this

I liked the sound and harmony though I couldn’t understand them.

I felt it was repetitive or a I was just becoming more dazed and tired due to this album

Really nice. Couldn’t understand a word but didn’t have to. Great sound, great backing vocals, really well done. Liked the variety too. This is what I was hoping this list would do more of.

Nice listen-this is why I wanted to work thru the list. Enjoyed the music & sounds a lot

interesting album for sure

not really my thing but not bad

What is this absolute perfection? Have never heard of these guys and immediate referred them to several friends. What an album.

Outstanding

Reigniting the fuse of blues rock, Songhoy Blues demonstrates precisely what's wrong with the label 'world music.' W/ 'world' meaning native to any locale other than the Western colonial powers, the rest of the world, even if they have little to do w/ each other, gets lumped together, while the West remains out in front. So, tho it's true that Songhoy Blues' features guitar work that resembles John Lee Hooker and Lead Belly - Garba Toure, a member of the band, fessed up, 'Besides, we love electric guitars too much' - Music in Exile isn't merely a blues rock record that happens to come out of Timbuktu. It's Malian too, it's music in exile but home music as well. Special tracks: 'Al Hassidi Terei,' 'Wayei,' 'Petit Merier,' 'Mali.'

I came into this with no expectations and I thoroughly enjoyed this. Very nice background music to work to, stunning vocals.

Fine

Exactly why I started this project! Never heard this album and probably never would have. Enjoyed it immensely without understanding lyrics. Great energy and instrumentation. Will revisit a lot

This reminds me of the ZamRock era in the 70's. Zambia had some really great rock coming out of it during that time. Bands I now listen to, enjoy, and tell my friends to listen to. This album feels like the successor to the ZamRock title. These dude are good. Musically it's great. I can't speak lyrically because I don't know the language but it feels good to listen to regardless. I need to look up more of their stuff this is a damn good album. Ok this whole album is getting added to my library. I've listened to it twice in a row. It is a really great album, especially since I don't know what they are singing about. These guys are great musicians. Made me a fan.

A fine album from a Mali blues rock band with an interesting story

Really good! Cool blend

This is cool, really nice guitar playing and vocals. Surprised it doesn't even have its own wiki entry, it's a good album

I want to rate this higher because I really did enjoy the instrumentals. The band is very proficient in playing and the rhythm is nice and tight. I just can’t do non-English vocals and that’s no one’s fault but mine.

Kiinnostavia juttuja, mutta liika on liikaa tällaisen äänimaailman kanssa.

No ei selvinny mitä kieltä joikasivat mutta kuuntelin kokonaan. Kivoja rytmejä

Jälleen en ymmärtänyt sanoista mitään mutta ihan kivaa bluesneppailua tämäkin Malilaispumppu tarjoilee.

This was delightful. It used african rhythms and voices but filtered it through a western prism to make it very accessible for this middle aged white man. It got a bit samey after a while but a thoroughly enjoyable 2 times through.

Very good album; soothing, nice, relaxing. Petit Metier was my favorite. 3/5

Very good album. The first few songs are excellent. I will definitely listen to this more.

This was totally new to me, and I loved it. These gents shred on the guitars.

This is my first totally new experience on this list, having not previously heard of Songhoy Blues, or this album, "Music In Exile". Perhaps I have heard them along the way without realising it? 1. Sourbour - Nice bluesy riff. Good vocals. Good percussion. 4* 2. Irganda - Uptempo. Danceable. Nice guitar. 4* 3. Al Hassidi Terei - This has a 60s feel to the guitar lick to it which reminds me of the Slade cover "I Hear You Calling". 3* 4. Sekou Oumarou - Nice swampy opening riff. A subdued number. 3* 5. Nick - A good opening riff again. The guitar reminds me of the 1950s blues, John Lee Hooker or Muddy Waters. 3* 6. Al Tchere Bele - 3*. 7. Wayei - 3*. Pretty guitar melodies. 8. Petit Metier. Ooh acoustic guitar. Very mellow. 3* 9. Jolie. Another melow number. The guitar is rolling along. The backing vocals are excellent, adding some dynamics, with the ending coming to a crescendo and abrupt halt. 4* 10. Desert Melodie - Gives the sense of drifting along, or even day dreaming. 3* 11. Mali. Nice folk style, guitar intro. 3* 36/55. Three stars. Blues mixed with African rhythms. It has a clean, bright sound. A pleasant enough listen. A little low key, perhaps. This didn't grab me. Lacks dynamics, and a little danger and/or despair. They maybe singing of this but it doesn't come through in the sound. At no time did I get the sense that they were in despair because their woman left them, or that they would knock you on your arse if you stole their woman. It could do with a Billy Gibbons or Muddy Waters growl hear and there. Nasty up the guitars a touch. Would I listen again? - Yes. Would I buy this album? - No

This album is the reason I love these challenges. This is awesome, combining african rhythms with RnB and getting something so fun for me to listen to. I didn't understand a single word, but I didn't care, I just wanted to dance. I'll be listening to this band frequently from now on, I'm really amazed by them. 5/5

This is super cool. I didn’t know what to expect but it’s great music. I mean even thinking about west African music traveling (sic) to America and becoming blues then traveling back and becoming this. It’s blues but more exciting with sometimes delving into other territories - sometimes a bit heavier, sometimes meditative (Wayei). Great to have on this list.

Incredible. Electric blues with an African touch. Usually, this kind of "folk" music tends to be done with native instruments, I really enjoyed hearing blues done with modern instruments played in a Malian style. Good stuff.

This was a solid blues album! I’d never heard of this album or band before but I dug their rock and blues sound. I don’t listen to many foreign albums but I’d definitely pick this one up again and recommend it to others!

4/5. It's a mix of blues jam bands and afrobeat, which both kind of exist in similar circles anyway. It is relaxing and still hype, the vocals kind of giving more of an instrument in and of itself, since I am not able to understand the lyrics. It's repetitive but in a good way, like a jam band. There is a more recent band called Mdou Moctar that has a similar sound, most likely inspired by Songhoy. It's a vibe for sure, and I would definitely relisten to it. Best Song: Soubour, Al Hassidi Terei, Wayei

Reading about this album while listening to it gave me a much bettter appreciation of the history and importance of this record - so I get why it made the list. But, musically it was just OK, nothing that really stood out or made me want to listen again in the future.

Blues based band from Timbuktu, Mali (Western Africa). Some songs with French lyrics, but western music with touches of African influence

Even though i cant understand the language. The guitar was enough to understand the music. Beautifully done.

I have no idea what these guys are saying, but man are they saying it. African music at its purest. The first two songs “Soubour” and “Irganda” absolutely rock and then the rest of the album calms down considerably. Despite that, this was a very pleasant experience. One of the ultimate examples of why I’m so glad to be doing this challenge. Were it not for this site, never in a million years would I find a charming little album like this. As a side note, the documentary these guys are prominently featured in, They Will Have To Kill Us First, is a very compelling story.

Music was good, lyrics are ???? because I don't know the language. Not that it's a bad thing, I just can't rate this higher than a 2 stars because lyrics often make up my mind about how good a song and album are. Since I don't want to take the time to get this translated, I'm going with 2 stars.

Did not like

Imagine if the Black Keys were from Africa, and better.

Buen sonido. Me gustaron mas las canciones tradicionales.

Cool eclectic stuff.

What a nice blues, and what a shame that making music is forbidden in northern Mali

Has some good beats, but not understanding a single word saps any enjoyment I can get from it.

top songs: wayei, soubour, al hassidi terei, jolie, nick, sekou oumarou did not expect this to be so gooddd

Donc le "desert blues", c'est aussi cool qu'on l'imagine en fait.

Thoughts before listening: No idea on this one, but from the title I'm going to guess African blues. Review: I dig this. The African desert blues is a genre that I have not paid a ton of attention to, but its very enjoyable. I especially like the inventive guitar work on this album with quickly picked licks throughout every song. 4-stars

Fine, but hard to get into the blues, when you don’t understand the stories, if there’s no funky instrumentalism. So some songs were great, some just the blues

I am not a cool guy, but listening to this album makes me feel like I am

This is the kind of discovery I like! It's blues-rock, but definitely in a way I haven't heard it before. If you can get past the language barrier, it's great!

Didnt know this one. Great listen!

1,3/5

pretty good

Not for me

This was a very pleasant album to listen to in the morning.

fun

I fw some of the songhai stuff but never really liked these guys all that much, good stuff but nothing too special. they can definitely play tho

No suenan mal pero tampoco me identifico

African rock music and blues. First half has such fun bangers with cool rocking guitars. Later half is stripped down, accoustic tracks with the signature african rubbery melodies and grooves. Less fun than the first half. Still a solid album. Al Hassidi Terei was my favourite from the album. I'll give it a 3.5.

Really enjoyed this ,amazing grooves and guitar work. The fact I couldn't understand anything they were saying whilst still enjoying the music speaks volumes!

It’s good but I’m not a world music fan

Rhythmic, upbeat then calm 3

My favorite band from Mali

Solid album, nice a funky. Fun listen, probably wouldn't go back to it but happy I listened once.

the music in this is so groovy mixed with a little rock and roll. i love it. can’t understand the words but the groove is nice.

I love any form of desert music, so am bloody looking forwards to discovering this band and album - especially given their backstory of displacement through civil war. ---- Very cool album, dropping into bassy rhythms and big grooves as easily as it breaks out into a powerful stomp. Always danceable. Spaces out nicely in the second half, great pacing. Favourite tracks: Sekou Oumaru, Al Tchere Bele, Wayei

Africans influenced by Americans who are influenced by African Americans. Weird cycle but works

Solid stuff, I vibe with Desert Blues

I liked it, but kind of repetitive at times

Pretty good stuff, little repetitive for a 40 minute album

Good but also not that interesting

Penúltima semana de mayo con esta banda, de la que había grandes chances que no conociese. De entrada, a los oídos es extraño. Es escuchar blues en una idioma totalmente ajeno a las lenguas latinas o romances, con una sonoridad más hipnótica. Me recuerda en mi país a Los Espíritus y a su época de oro, que ojalá regrese. Grata sorpresa. Hasta mañana, gente

So unusual, love it

I was a bit skeptical because it's so recent but I like a bit of Desert Blues and this is an excellent listen, even without understanding the words. I can only hope they're suitably excoriating.

This was excellent. African blues, great sound

This was cool. Fresh sounding, I’d be interested to hear more.

Honestly a good time, even though it isn’t my typical genre.

I was not ready for that guitar! Reading up about them they cite the Beatles, and other early rock bands for why they use electric guitar, though unmentioned I also hear a lot of Led Zeppelin in there as well. Funky, toe tapping all the way through, My only regret is that it's in a language I don't speak.

This album is incredible and so unique. The story behind the album, amazing. The instrumentation, brilliant. And blues in 2015? Heck yeah! They definitely captured the spirit from those before like Muddy Waters, Stevie Ray Vaughan... It's a foot tapper for sure, and just for kicks, they wrote "Al Hassidi Terei" in 11/16? You don't hear that everyday, and it was awesome! I gotta checkout their other stuff sometime.

Very cool sounds

I really enjoyed this. The layers of vocals beautifully complimented the guitars and the songs typically had space to breathe and develop. Very catchy and would listen to again.

Language barrier. It is upbeat and fun musically.

Better than Coldplay

Not my thing

I never really listened to African music, so this was a fun new experience. Although it’s not my type of music, I can definitely appreciate it!

At first I wasn’t sure. Liked the first song very bluesy. But relistened and then listened again. Found myself downloading album and listening to more of their stuff. . Love petit menier and mali. Have no idea what they are saying but maybe pleading or heartbreak in the mali song Blues folk. World

Great background vibes

I liked this a lot. Then I reads about them and liked it even more. Guitar was killer. I have no idea what they said, but I don’t know what any lyrics say. Definitely going to check out more.

This is literally the first time I'm hearing of African desert blues. Very interesting reading up on the group too. Originally from Mali, some of the members were essentially forced out of their hometown by militant and eventually jihadist groups (who banned music among many other things, how does one ban MUSIC?). Regardless, this didn't stop the group from making music and eventually landing a record deal. Not knowing much about the Songhay language, I can really only speak on the instrumentals and rhythms/grooves that I'm hearing. The guitar is very prominent (as it is in your stock blues music) establishing the underlying rhythm and a constant energy for each track. And that energy varies from high to low depending on the track, as there are a few stripped down acoustic pieces here. You can really hear the emotion in the vocals, despite the foreign tongues. Pretty novel listening experience, even though this isn't something I'd necessarily seek out myself.

I like their story and the music was fine.

Achei legal

Cool sound

It kept looping and I kept not turning it off

Pretty cool but can't see myself listening to a lot of it. 3 stars.

Don’t feel like listening to international stuff.

Good bops. 4/5

Didn't listen to African rock before, especially desert rock/blues. The album is a breath of fresh air compared to most of the non-western albums, but is still pretty basic in my opinion. Most of the songs are simple, with basic chord progressions, melodies and vocals. The same motifs repeat throughout the same song, which make them a bit repetitive and boring sounding. There's a reason why most of music uses even the most basic song structures, they just makes it sound more interesting to the listener. "Nick" was a standout track for me, but even on that the same sections repeat over and over. The blues is a genre which has so much to offer and it's so easy to create different licks and passages and to make the song sound interesting and different. What I enjoyed the most were the blues oriented songs and melodies, the rock aspect wasn't that interesting to me, and I think the blues fits more into the vibe of the music for me. Was between a 2 and a 3.

I love when this list actually gives me an album that I haven't heard of before and that isn't some lame British alt rock. That being said, this album kind of faded into the background for me.

It was nice to be presented with something truly new. Not just a band I haven't heard of, but I'm not sure if I've ever listened to any music that originated in Mali before. So I appreciated it from that standpoint--the opportunity to be exposed something entirely unexpected. The downside was the music itself really didn't grip me. The strong blues influences were obvious and unfortunately that kind of music just isn't my jam.

...

Endlich mal wieder eine echte Überraschung in der Liste. Klasse.

It’s cool. I don’t know what to write about it. It’s not my thing.

muito bom

esse eh fortíssimo. o documentário que eles tão tbm parece super interessante no mais, música como forma de resistência é pica em qualquer lugar do mundo! chique demais!

Extraordinary.

really a 3.8 but going with a 4. it's really nice and introduced me to something new to appreciate

Listens: 5 Standout Tracks: Irganda, Wayei, Petit Metier Added To Library: TRUE So far, I can't understand anything they're saying (and I don't imagine that's going to change much), and YTM isn't showing any lyrics, but the beats can't be denied! They're hoppin'. Major "Irish jig" qualities to the music. Some of the songs remind me of the Dropkick Murphys. Wow, the album is excellent. 4

Anytime an album explores how another culture blends their traditional sound with a modern western genre I’m all for it. It always fuckin rules

very nice, i will definitely spend more time with it. haven't heard them or of them before, those are the best parts of the list. i do think the general idea will stay with me longer than any particular track though

Different, non-English language. Kinda catch though.

Not to my liking.

I wish that I could understand the lyrics because I was very intrigued when I read this band’s story. They’re very talented, and instrumentally this was exactly the kind of album I enjoy. I have not received many non-English albums so far, but this sets a solid bar. I thought it was pretty good.

Pretty damn interesting, never heard this kind of stuff before

Oh yeah that's what I'm here for. Who cares if I don't understand it? It's blues

Desert Jazz is so good

Unexpected. A vibe.

2 Stars (5/15)

Of all the foreign language albums we have listened to - this may have been my favorite to this point

Modern West African blues rock — I like it a lot.

This mash up was an utter failure for me.

Bluesy jams from Timbuktu

Good album. Nice to listen to lyrics not in English for a change. No stand out song

Not my jam

Not for me, but fine.

Here we go, THIS is what this list is for, who knows if I would have found this otherwise and it is GREAT.

-this was interesting! wasn’t sure what I was expecting to hear but there were a lot of influences I was sorta picking up on. so it never really got boring -I guess the end struggled to hold my interest as much as the beginning and middle -but holy shit some of these songs had a really good groove. I liked it -Favorites are Nick and Desert Melodie

Not bad per se, but not my thing at all. Some nice groove, but it gets repetitive.

Just an average African blues album. one of the 1001 to listen to before you die!?

Really enjoyed! A bit repetitive towards the end..

I enjoyed this, made me feel good and for that it gets a 4

This is why I love this list. Guitar blues album from a Mali band fleeing civil war and it was actually pretty decent. Language barrier probably stopped it scoring higher but was vibrant and enjoyable listen

Perfect.

Serene rock from mali, these guys really blend the rock instrumentals with their local music in a way that not only is it nice, it's also something I could see myself returning to. Really underrated but well made album

Quite pleasant

Very delightful album and I always am happy to find these surprises 😃

Never heard of this band, will definitely be listening to more!

Not for me... I would need to do copious amounts of acid, shrooms, or some other illegal hallucinogen to listen to this.

This is what I'm talking about, I'm all in on these guys.

Bad bad bad. Direct rip off of american blues. When the brit bands of the 60's were influenced by the blues at lest they changed them and made them thier own. Not being in a language I speak made it all that much worse. This sould not be on any list. I give it a .001

Nice blues!

Liking the blend of sounds and textures here, although it sounds as if their personal sound is still in development. Something here's not clicking for me. But I checked out their latest album and I am loving it very much.

This was a breath of fresh air after a nasty run of 2s. Id listen again! 6/10

Nice stuff! I enjoyed it pretty well although nothing super stood out to me

This was a good album, but I couldn't help but find it was all over the place, some real bangers alongside some rougher listens. I may have to give it more listens to really appreciate it, but I don't have a strong desire to return to it yet.

Solid stuff! I love hearing music from across the world, and Songhai/Malian music isn't one I'd touched on before now.

Overall solid. Started off with a couple really good songs and then sort of lost steam in the back half of the album, but still solid

Nutty guitar all the way through Wish I could dive deeper into some lyrics Petit Metier stood out in particular

Good album but did not have the magic of others for me. I think i would have enjoyed more if I could understand the lyrics. Intriguing but did not change my life.

Started out a bit boring, but picked up as it went along. African music has always done something for me

Of to a strong start but got a bit homogene after 5 songs

I thought it was good. Very chill. Feels like traditional African sounds with jazz in a very honest and proper way.

Miellyttävän rento levy, ja kiva kuulla taas afrikastakin jotain uutta! 4/5

some cool guitar

I don't know how I am consistently surprised by how great West African psychedelic guitar rock is but it happens 100% of the time. This might be the best one yet, though. An absolute heat rock.

Outstanding album, absolutely brilliant. Get big Ali Farka Touré vibes from it. One of the best I’ve had in a while.

Cool desert blues, similar to Tinariwen, cool story. Will be adding this to rotation. 4 - will definitely listen again

This is why I love music so much

Very nice

Cool, but not my jam. Reminds me of the album Damon Albarn did. Some cool grooves, but probably not something I'd reach for again when there's Fela et al.

8/10.

This album has a very good story behind it. It was so nice to learn more about the culture and how music creators reacted to the “Exile”. Music wise, I’ll have to stay true to myself and I personally prefer more well thought out music than jamming music. I could feel the energy, but without checking the story behind, it was a bit difficult for me to get naturally instinctively focused on the music. Still good but not yet a four for me.

I think it’s awesome that this 1,001 list includes music from all over the world. It can be very easy to just focus on US/UK music and it’s good to see representation. I enjoyed listening to this album, but I did find it got a bit repetitive for me. Glad it came across my desk, but probably wouldn’t seek this album out again. I wouldn’t mind listening to more Songhoy Blues, to see how their sound evolved/evolves.

This is the kind of album I really appreciate from this. Very unique and something that I probably would have never picked up otherwise. Their story is fascinating and heartbreaking. Some of the songs do seem to be a bit repetitive but I really enjoyed the bluesy instrumentation.

Fun for a song but the novelty wears off quick

Really enjoyed the mixture of blues, rock, and cultural music. My biggest mistake was listening to this on a flight, so I wasn’t able to look up the translations for the lyrics. Definitely something I’ll have to come back to, but I don’t think it would be able to boost this album to a four.

Cool album. Way cooler backstory. Can you imagine your entire country turning into the town from Footloose? I would love to see biopic about an American or English musician struggling with their manager, fame, or drugs and then we slowly pan over to these guys being like "What are they complaining about?".

Giddy-up, this is the sort of thing I hoped to find on this list. I probably never would have heard about Songhoy Blues otherwise. Great sound, great story. Yeah, this goes on some playlists.

This album rules hard, love it. This is why I signed up for this, because I would have never listened otherwise

Legit Malian blues, rich, earthy and driving. The combo of high-energy, bluesy yet danceable cuts, with tender acoustic yearnings add to the richness. Opening and closing cuts are best. Kudos to the producer for keeping the touch super light and not fixing what isn't broken. The editors do the band and their readers a solid in helping to make this just a a bit better known, but not sure why this was exed. One digs thoroughly, recognizing that one will never be an expert and anything more than the most casual sort of connoisseur.

Groovy, i liked it and it was surprisingly good cause i had never listened to African music

7/10 Feel like this would've gotten a crazy score if the whole album had kept pace with the first couple of songs but unfortunately I feel as though the later ones didn't hit quite the same for me. I love the energy of this and despite not really understanding any of the lyrics the rocky feel-good guitar made this such an enjoyable experience overall! Certainly pure vibes squeezed out of 'Soubour' and 'Irganda' straight from a movie soundtrack. It's just a slight shame that as I went through I felt the vibes so be fairly similar but with a bit less gas.

What a great album. As someone who is slightly familiar with this style of music, it was a pleasant surprise to listen to a great example of the genre. It’s so refreshing to my ears.

dont know what i was expecting but was super happy with the first half, i wish the rest of the album also had some stronger instrumentals 3.5/5

freakily enjoyed this

> the Beatles This rules

Awesome in every way. Why I'm here.

Not in my edition of the book! 2015. 3 stars. Intriguing African blues band. Well done of its kind, but the tracks do tend to blur into each other. Not sure I'd listen to it again, but glad I did.

Blues del desierto. Me ha gustado mucho, sobre todo por (1) ser algo diferente a la mayoría de álbumes de esta lista y (2) la historia que hay detrás del álbum. Músicos de Mali que tuvieron que huir por amenazas islamistas en un periodo de conflicto, teniendo que grabar el álbum (oportunamente titulado "Música desde el exilio") en EE. UU. Música relajante, ideal para tener de fondo, llena de armonías vocales preciosas. Aunque precisamente esa cualidad tranquila hace que el álbum en su conjunto se acabe haciendo un poco largo y repetitivo.

Went in with zero knowledge or expectation and was sort of blown away. The music and musicianship is great and the vocals were almost instrumental since I wasn't able to understand the lyrics. Such an interesting story behind the music and I am glad that they are able to make it and put it out for people to hear. I really like it.

Cool sound!

Irganda was a highlight for me. Good stuff

Did not hate this. Also not really my thing...

The guitar work on here was unique and interesting. I enjoyed the music but am not generally a fan of group vocals which is most of this album.

Alright but far from good.

Decent music but not my style

This album was fine, and I thought the last 4 or so songs were good and fun to listen to, but as someone that is not a blues fan, generally, I found the first half of the album rather bland. Even though I can definitely recognize the adversity these musicians went through and what this album may mean for their story and where they come from, ultimately, compared to all the other music made in the last 70 years, I do not believe this album belongs on this list. I would much rather hear something more traditional or maybe more rock-inspired that has more edge to it.

Not nearly as strong as Ali Farka Touré’s work, and purpose built for a “world music” section at a local health food store. But, still a vibe - I’ll admit I danced a little. I like Malian blues more than any blues from the 90s onward (SRV excepted) so at least there’s that.

story is much cooler than the music

eh

Dope

Banging Intro track All songs in the first half are very catchy, groovy songs Back half starts to get a bit meandering The melody of the chant during the closing track is so good

Good at times, but not really my music

By itself it seems just ok, but the story behind the band makes it so much more meaningful.

Yeahh thats what im talking about

I didn't understand a single word but I was dancing the whole time.

Never would have listened to or heard of this one without the website. This one was honestly a joy. Relatively contemporary guitar focused rock/blues with catchy beats and good vocals. Their 2017 album Resistance also SLAPS!

Never heard these guys before but I really enjoyed them! Their tiny desk concert is great too. Super talented dudes. Love the mix of genres. Heck, this album is almost an entire genre on its own. Very much unlike anything else I've heard.

Blew me away. Did not know what I was in for and was more than pleasantly surprised. Downloaded the album.

funky town ale ne je to dobre africke hybeme sa ziadne nudne kapitalisticke anericke kokotiny co boli vcera ten paul simons nech ide domov do tekova.

I just don’t know how to rate worldwide albums. So I’ll talk about all I can with any album which is my enjoyment. I liked their voices and the call style throughout. I also appreciated the straight simple acoustic music. I just think I’m the wrong person at the wrong time for this album. It doesn’t hold my attention (of course at the fault of my own inability to understand).

I find it really hard to rate these international albums. Given off of just vibes honestly this album was great. I loved the use of the main voice with the background “response” voices, even though I couldn’t understand the lyrics the use of the voice as an instrument really good. I loved also the actual instrumentation, it carried a lovely vibe with it I thoroughly enjoyed, especially through the guitar. My complaint however, and it definitely comes from my oblivious and ignorant ear as someone quite far removed from this kind of music generally, is that the whole album kinda sounds the exact same. There isn’t much distinction for me between one song and another and it makes the album feel like it carries on for far too long. It’s a good vibe in the beginning, but by the end it feels old. I definitely did like this album though a lot more than I was expecting and I’m glad I was exposed to it.

Energetic afro blues, thought this one slapped

Desert blues from Timbuktu. Excellent modern blues. African rhythms and instruments. A fantastic surprise.

Really good! Lots of variety from track to track, and no duds. To be honest, I liked this more than most American blues albums on the list. 4.5

I went into this blind, and man, I am so glad I did. I really enjoyed it, it was a very pleasant surprise. My biggest nitpick is that a lot of the songs did not have a bridge, they just seemed very much A-A-A-A until it faded out. Not really a rock song structure there. But aside from that, I liked the singing (even though I did not know what he was singing about), and the instrumentation was very blues-y. Definitely something I will come back to. Top tracks: "Soubour," "Irgandi," "Mali"

Whoa, I was not expecting those bluesy, southern-sounding guitar licks to kick off the album on Soubour. What an awesome song. Apparently these guys are desert rock. Never heard of the genre before but I am a fan now. This album is a great mix of classic African beats/styling and southern rock (think Skynyrd) guitar plucking and playing. It's like they took Ali Farka Toure and his classic African guitar sounds (almost Spanish styling) and modernized it. I had to stop everything I was doing just to listen to track after track. Irganda, Al Hassidi Terei, Sekou Oumarou, and Nick - also awesome. The second half of the album dipped a little, like they took their foot off the gas, or the wah pedal. It isn't abrupt, as Ai Tchere Bele and Wayei still have good bits of that unique blues sound, but it fades away and gets replaced with a more traditional sound, like Toure's. It's still deft and all (listen to Mali) just not as unique. Easy four stars; thought long and hard about five.

Ok, so I liked this album, but I'm going to show my Western bias and not rate it higher than a 3 simply because I don't know what they're saying and can't connect with the music. But, it sounds good, the musicianship is excellent, and I appreciate having heard it. Nice bluesy African stylings and I like the guitar lines. I wouldn't mind hearing it again, but doubt I'd dig deeper into it. Songs that caught my attention: the first three tracks were pretty compelling, particularly on close listen - Soubor, Irganda, and Al Hassidi Terei. But then I kind of drifted. Ai Tchere Bele caught my attention on every listen, and then I found I liked the remaining tracks. 3 feels lazy, but that's what I'm going with.

Pretty great album all around. Not sure I'd listen again but glad to have heard it.

The was a gem I'd never heard before. I love all the different influences and rhythms. I knew nothing of music from Mali before this, and I'm excited to hear more, and especially to hear more from this group.

Fucking class

Quarter toned melodies give me vertigo. And overall it drones; like trance music - just one idea pumped over and over and over.

Wonderful take on the Blues, mixed with literal music escapism. While the hardships they faced must have been unimaginably terrifying, I'm glad they were able to find a community to introduce them to a wider audience!

Neat

It was okay but I’m not racing home to put on my songhoy blues

This was cool! Don’t know how much I would revisit but it was good

nothing more "world music" than being from Timbuktu

Wiki: Band member Garba Toure states,"We grew up listening to old music by the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix and John Lee Hooker.'' Blijft altijd wonderlijk hoe een fundamenteel figuur in de Amerikaanse rockgeschiedenis vooral op waarde geschat lijkt te worden in West Afrika. Daar wordt hij echt op het zelfde niveau geschaald als namen als The Beatles en Jimi. Maar voor we het weer gaan hebben over die wonderlijke wisselwerking tussen de Delta Blues en West Afrikaanse Blues, wat we al hebben gedaan bij andere platen uit deze regio, moet vooral uitgelicht worden hoe bekwaam deze muzikanten zijn. Ik heb toch wel weer genoten van de bluesy grooves en de elektrische vibe. En voor een album waarbij je het gehele plot wel een beetje mist vanwege de taalbarrière bleef het toch interessant. Vaak merk ik dat ik er snel inkom bij dergelijke albums, maar dat de magie daarna vrij snel wegebt omdat het mijn aandacht niet weet vast te houden. Deze blijft eigenlijk van start tot eind wel boeiend, met een paar memorabele hoogtepunten. Opnieuw een prettige kennismaking met Afro-rock! 8/10 Highlights: Soubour Sekou Oumarou Petit Metier

Goeie groove, leuke kennismaking met deze afrorock. De inspiratie voor deze band is on point en grappig om te lezen dat dan ook ineens Damon Albarn en Julian Casablancas betrokken zijn bij het overvliegen van deze jongen naar Europa om een plaat te maken en shows te spelen. Echter verwacht ik niet deze plaat nog veel vaker op te zetten. 7/10

Irganda was my fave track. Reminds me of Amadou & Miriam.

Not for me. Any music that I don't understand lyrically (because I don't speak the language; my "fault" I agree) has to be exceptional musically to hold my interest. This... isn't. It's competent and if I knew what they were singing about, it might be more. 2/5.

How many of these are going to say "Not for Chad"?

It was interesting but wasnt interesting enough to stand out to me

This is amazing "desert blues" from Mali. I just love the sound. Yes it's blues but goes beyond the usual 12-bar scheme I'm a bit tired of. And it has this African warmth from the voices and typical guitar playing.

I love this guys’ energy, but I can’t understand them.

Not special, but enjoyable.

Wtf? Nooit gedacht dat Songhoy Blues hierin ging staan. Zalig! Ik kende enkel Worry (wat trouwens een geniaal nummer is). Maar dit is ook echt goed! Top!! 4.2

Easily one of my favorite albums until now

Very interesting! 9.5/10

Wow this was a surprisingly good album. I wasn't expecting such a rock oriented sound that has a tough bluesy song. The guitars are tough an uncompromising and the rhythms are as you'd expect from a west African group. Their story is one of defiance and perseverance and their sound is pure delta blues with a nice rhythmic drive that makes for a beautiful marriage. I enjoyed this a lot and will put it in rotation. 4 stars

I have no idea what they were saying on Music in Exile—but honestly, who cares when the music slaps this hard? The grooves are tight, the rhythm section is on point, and every track pulls you in whether you understand the lyrics or not. It’s one of those albums that proves you don’t need to speak the language to feel the vibe. Great energy, great musicianship, and a sound that sticks with you. Favorite song: Soubour

Ok, but not really my jam.

Magical African blues. Love it.

Some great guitar skill on display, with some energetic riffs & passionate intensity. I enjoyed the listen, just wish I could understand the lyrics.

This was a great listen. Loved their take on blues and other folk music.

this was mostly nice, but it was also mostly the same song over and over again

A lot of things I like in here! Bluesy country instrumentation, good vocals, cohesive sound

...fine? A combination of African and western music, but kinda lacking interesting sides of either. Nothing horribly offensive or particularly memorable. Might reveal more on further listens, but not particularly driven to listen again.

Surprisingly great, exactly the kind of thing I wanted to find from this journey.

Very enjoyable, ridiculously fun guitar :) It was different, and a nice listen. :) I'm teetering on 4 and 5 stars, I'll go 4, but this is really good music and a 5 for someone else I bet :)

Well this was a toe tapper all the way through wow! I guess I love African rock ! Standouts: Soubour Sekou Oumarou Nick Wayei Desert melody

Songhoy Blues - Music in Exile Album Review Music in Exile is a high-energy mix of desert blues and rock, full of driving rhythms, hypnotic guitar work, and pure passion. The band blends traditional Malian melodies with modern rock influences, creating a sound that feels both fresh and deeply rooted in history. Nick and Al Hassidi Terei are standout tracks, bursting with groove and infectious energy, while Desert Melodie is a real highlight—beautifully hypnotic and rich with emotion. The guitar work is sharp and rhythmic, pushing each song forward with an unstoppable momentum that makes you want to move. Despite being inspired by difficult times, the album feels uplifting and full of life. The mix of intricate melodies and pulsing rhythms makes for an engaging listen, and even though some songs feel a little similar, the sheer energy and spirit of the music keep it exciting. Music in Exile proves that desert blues is as powerful as ever, with Songhoy Blues bringing a fresh, modern twist to the genre.

Very good blues band

was nice

I’m a fan of AfroPsyche. This is pretty cohesive. Enjoyable

Very fun record, different than my usual listening habits.

I enjoyed this. Still it makes a person feel guilty to like Damon Albarn's Mali Music more and any blues record I've ever heard less. 2 I have this a first listen without reading up about the band. It was fine. Nimbly played, blues grooves to dance to and lyrics in a language I don’t understand - nothing to fall in love with here. I then did my reading about the band and why they are particularly worthy of our attention. It seems that they fled persecution and were ultimately befriended by Damon Albarn and Julian Casablancas. I am very sorry for their troubles on all counts. But even in the glory of its tragic context, their music is just nimbly played blues grooves to dance to. There were, however, a few moments that reminded me of Ocean Colour Scene, a band that won’t be on this list since they have never had to flee persecution and, I daresay, have no friends. So I went and listened to a little OCS. Profit in Peace is a banger. 1998! They weren’t wrong - ‘we’ did gotta fight some more. They had the 21st Century’s number. Do Songhoy Blues’ songs (now a decade old apparently) have that kind of perspicacity? I have no idea, thirty seconds research on Google didn’t turn up the English translation so I gave up. 1.5/5

Not my jam

Great North African album

I didn't understand a word, but the beats were fire.

I was not expecting to like this album as much as I did. Songhoy Blues did a beautiful job incorporating African traditionalism and deep American southern blues. You could play this anywhere in America with English lyrics and people would never know the difference. Soubour, the opening song, immediately grabs you and pulls you in The song Nick also could’ve been straight outta the Mississippi Delta, while songs like Al Hassidi Terei pulled in more of an authentic African feel. If I had a complaint it’s that autocorrect can’t figure out how to spell these song names and it’s pissing me off. I can definitely say this is one of those 1001 Must Listen to albums, and I am grateful I had the chance.

Random thoughts: * Never heard of this before but I enjoyed it overall. * Cool to hear blues mixed with African music. * I would like to check out the documentary now. * Music can never be stopped!

Pretty nice album, a little bit blues-y at times, very enjoyable as a background listen, maybe a bit too repetitive if it's your main listen. Enjoyed listening to the album, it was nice.

i get why this is here but musically i didn’t feel very strongly about this album. it was cool to listen to singing in languages other than english every once in a while though.

Some nice covers

The music and backstory are equally interesting. 4/5

First time listen - really enjoyed it

Loving the music, the vocals don't always bring it home for me though. Solid 3

Don't know what they are saying but still solid album.

its alr. cool back story i kind of hate this site calls anything thats not traditionally western or european sounding it gets called "world music". thats not a genre this genre has a name... probably idk actually know what to call this. dessert blue ig thats what they call it.

decent guitar work, interesting band

interesante propuesta y mezcla de sonidos, la historia de fondo es muy dura

Interesting music. Obviously didn’t understand the lyrics but you could hear the passion

You know, I feel bad that I’ve somewhat come to dread the World category. I tried not to let the language barrier affect the experience, but most of the time I never really get into the album. This might have to be the first one where I didn’t have that problem. The fusion of blues rock with some traditional African influence makes for an album that is accessible and engaging. Who cares if I don’t understand what they are saying (though considering this band’s origins as being literal exiles, I think it would have be nice). There are some moments where the lyrics feels a little repetitive, which is usually a problem on the world albums. But outside of that, I really enjoyed this one. Favorite track: Soubour Other hits: Irganda, Al Hassidi Terei, Wayei, Petit Metier, Nick, Ai Tchere Bele

This is why I signed up to this. To find cool stuff like this.

Amazing band, amazing story, amazing set at Love Supreme, amazing album.