msafiri 3 MORE GREAT sounds habariinspiration 38 HHHHH TCHAMANTCHE Rokia Traore ( Nonesuch) Multi- award winning Malian singer Rokia Traore once told The Times ( UK) newspaper that rather than following the traditions of her homeland, " I'm more interested in inventing a new way of singing". On her fourth album, Tchamantche, she comes admirably close to achieving such a bold ambition. Her voice is intimate and sophisticated, low- key and melancholic – a reflection perhaps of her rootless, cosmopolitan existence – while her lyrics eloquently encourage African women to seek emancipation from poverty and social injustice. The highlight of the album is an unexpected cover version of Billie Holiday's ' The Man I Love', which shows Rokia to be a masterful interpreter of the classic American songbook. FAJAR DI ATAS AWAN Suarasama ( Drag City) Drag City is an independent record label best known for issuing critically acclaimed ' Americana' by the likes of Joanna Newsom and Bonnie Prince Billy. At first glance, the latest Drag City release couldn't be more different. It's a re- release of a rare 1997 recording by Suarasama, a group of distinguished Indonesian ethnomusicologists, led by composer Irwansyah Harahap and singer Rianthony Hutajulu, whose music also draws upon Sumatran, Malayan, Middle Eastern and Indian influences. Suarasama perform on a variety of ethnic instruments that all together conjure up a hypnotic, simple sound. On close listening, it proves to have much in common with the unfettered free expression of traditional Western folk forms. VENUS ON EARTH Dengue Fever ( M80) Dengue Fever is a tropical disease. It's also the name of an equally infectious Los Angeles- based group who draw their inspiration from 1960s Cambodian pop, especially the most psychedelic strains that flourished before Pol Pot came to power. The group's Cambodian- American singer Chhom Nimol writes her lyrics in Khmer, before the rest of the group add their potent blend of guitar- and- keyboard- driven garage rock to the mix. The end result is high- energy pop music that totally transcends pastiche. GUITAR- BOY SUPERSTAR Sir Victor Uwaifo ( Soundway) The music of Nigerian recording artist Sir Victor Uwaifo is as varied, inventive and unpredictable as the man himself. While Uwaifo ( the Sir is self- awarded, though utterly deserved) first entered a studio as far back as 1963, his musical career has often taken a backseat to his work as a sculptor, poet, painter and even Justice of the Peace in his birthplace of Benin City. Guitar- Boy Superstar is a superb new retrospective compilation that concentrates mainly on the songs that Sir Victor cut in the early 1970s with his group the Melody Maestros. Their signature sound was influenced equally by American rock and pop and the traditional Benin dance style known as Ekassa. It makes for a rhythmic and extremely energetic deep soul stew, full of folk chants, percussion explosions and hard funk grooves, all held together by the leader's shimmering, virtuoso guitar playing. The album's title is no wild boast, just a simple statement of fact. CALYPSOUL 70 Compilation ( Strut Records) Strut Records' previous compilation, Nigeria 70, was an ear- opening survey of a key year in the development of modern African music. Calypsoul 70, the follow- up disc, is equally satisfying. Concentrating again on the fertile 1970s, a time when fusion wasn't a dirty word and experimentation was actively encouraged, this jam- packed album brings together knockout calypso, reggae, Latin, afro and soul tunes from across the Caribbean. Apart from being infectiously funky, a lot of the music here shares an engaged, ironic, even angry po-litical consciousness. This, after all, was the era of ' Black Power'. That's not to say that Calypsoul 70 neglects the joyous, party side of Caribbean music. If tracks like Clar-ence Curvan's titular ' Calypsoul' don't get you dancing, nothing ever will. KQ REVIEWS Andrew Littlefield listens to the best new CDs HHHHH CAFÉ DE LOS MAESTROS Various artists ( Wrasse Records) Café de los Maestros reunites many of the surviving stars of Argentinian tango's golden age for a project that's already been dubbed ' The Buenos Aires Social Club'. Producer Gustavo Santaolalla is the Ry Cooder figure here. In 2003, he visited Argentina's capital city to work with such legendary performers as Nelly Omar, Haracio Salgan and Carlos Garcia on a series of solo and duo recordings that eventually formed the basis of this compelling album. Despite their advancing years, the Argentinian singers and musicians did Santaolalla proud, well aware that this disc might prove to be their last chance to leave their mark on musical history. Just about every style of tango is represented, from slow- burning, sensual torch songs to hot- blooded orchestral dance numbers. Most importantly, the spirit of the much- missed Astor Piazolla, the undisputed master of modern tango, hovers over the entire record thanks to the presence of his former violinist Fernando Suarez Pas. HHHHH MSAFIRI'S TOP3 albums

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