Released: March 9, Because Music

The Mali superstars’ new single from their massively acclaimed “Welcome to Mali”, is spellbinding, conjuring images of rain splashing onto arid ground. One doesn’t want to credit Damon Albarn with too great a hand in the song’s success, but his addition of squelchy post-rave synths, which pulse and fizz in the background, is a masterstroke, throwing a woozy neon light on something ancient and powerful.

Equally good is the demo version of the song, added here as a B-side, which features the song stripped of modern sheen and foregrounds the throaty edge of Amadou Bagayoko’s voice and the rumble of his guitar, creating the sort of drama a thousand skinny-jeaned Brit indie boys are currently toiling in vain to produce.

Posted In Single Reviews, Mar 01 2009. Words - Richard