Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba
Album release: Miri (2019, Outhere)
Is it any exaggeration when we say that Bassekou Kouyate is the world’s best player of the ngoni, a traditional stringed instrument from West Africa? Probably not. Kouyate is the man who made the instrument world-famous (it is a predecessor of the banjo). The Independent newspaper proclaimed his aptly named band, Ngoni Ba, the best rock ‘n’ roll band in the world after a concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall. In other words, this is an unmissable concert!
Flagey
“Kouyaté has updated the dry-gut plucking of the traditional ngoni, adding electric pick-ups, distortion and effects pedals, creating an extraordinary array of sounds from a spindly metallic plinking to a grinding bluesy roar.” (The Daily Telegraph)
“Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba…the best rock’n’roll band in the world.” (The Independent)
