Rokia Traor: Tchamantch

Tchamantch, meaning point of equilibrium in Bambara, is the fourth album of Mali singer Rokia Traor. Released in 2008, and dedicated to her fellow countryman Ali Farka Tour, one of the African continent’s most internationally renowned musicians, the album is a turning point in the singers career after she has spent a large part of it revisiting the Malian musical tradition. Tchamantch reveals a unique sound in which electric Gretsch guitar riffs come to mingle with the ancestral sounds of Malian instruments, offering a new setting to her crystalline voice. If Traor favors minimalist and emotional acoustic ballads, she clearly assumes her blues and even rock influences, signing an intimate and voluptuous album of artistic maturity.

Tracklist

1. Dounia (Side 1)
2. Dianfa (Side 1)
3. Zen (Side 1)
4. Aimer (Side 2)
5. Kounandi (Side 2)
6. Koronoko (Side 2)
7. Tounka (Side 3)
8. Tchamantch (Side 3)
9. A Ou Ni Sou (Side 3)
10. The Man I Love (Side 4)