Boubacar Traore Kongo Magni

EAC rip + log



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FLAC



Boubacar Traoré was born in Kayes, in 1942, in the Bambara region of Mali. His nickname, Kar Kar was given to him when he was the local school football (soccer) star. It means "the one who dribbles too much" in Bambara. Kar Kar is a self taught musician. He began to compose music at an early age, influenced by American blues and kassonké, a traditional music style from the Kayes region. Kar Kar's older brother spent eight years in Cuba studying music and, once he returned to Mali, he helped his brother learn how to play the guitar.



He tends to be marketed as a sort of bluesman but Kongo Magni seldom if ever makes use of any of the conventions of the blues; the 12-bar chord progression on which the blues is based never appears, and Traoré's guitar style owes far more to the kora-wielding griots of his native country than to the emotive, string-bending bluesmen of the American south. That said, there are moments when echoes of the Delta do resonate at the back of his songs, as on the repeated minor-scale riffs that power the regretful title track and "Horonia." But throughout the whole album Traoré's sound is gentle and subdued, even on relatively upbeat songs like "Kanou" and the softly chugging "Dounia Tabolo." His backing ensemble, which includes accordion, marimba, gourd, and small harp as well as harmonica, supports him with exquisite delicacy and taste, most notably on the lovely patriotic anthem "Indépendance." Also worth noting: the quiet but thornily intricate rhythmic pattern underlying "Sougourouni Saba." Highly recommended.