Made In Dakar

Made in Dakar Import Orchestra Baobab The legendary Senegalese band's first album in six years, consisting in part of re-recordings of the group's earlier songs, continues it's impressive record of seamlessly fusing the traditional and the modern. Each song here- with vocals performed in Wolof, Portuguese Creole, French, and Malinke- is equally rich in history, testament to one of the few positive outcomes of European occupation as they deftly incorporate soul and salsa, rumba and jazz, reggae and country, an exercise in cross-pollination made all the more impressive by the near invisibility of the threads connecting it all. That's ultimately what makes Orchestra Baobab such a joy: It's dance music, pure and simple, made for others to have a good time, easily appreciated on the basis of it's musicianship alone (Attisso is particularly inspired throughout) but becoming more impressive the deeper you dig into what's actually being done.