Malian griot Bassekou Kouyaté has emerged as one of African music’s visionaries, investing his four-stringed ngoni with the grandeur of a rock guitar or the 21-string kora. Electrification, adding assorted ngonis to his all-family band and staying open to western influences have delivered music of high class and wide appeal. Ba Power finds Kouyaté in full command, his chattering ngoni lines augmented by guest guitars (Samba Touré, Chris Brokaw), the rhythms given a rock tinge by Robert Plant’s drummer Dave Smith. Opener Siran Fen is a blast, Waati an intricate, funky workout, and Fama Magni has a John Lee Hooker swagger. Ba power indeed.
