Tinariwen

Formed in the Tuareg rebel camps of North Africa, Tinariwen are, literally, a band of refugees playing a politically charged style of the "desert blues" associated with the region. The band formed in 1982 and began mixing traditional Tuareg music with more Western-derived guitar-based styles, releasing their first widely available album, THE RADIO TISDAS SESSIONS, in 2002. Their profile was dramatically enhanced following a performance at the now legendary Festival in the Desert, which took place in Mali in 20001. Tinariwen's music is both moving and empowering, and the group seems poised to outlast the "critical darling" status thrust upon them by an excitable music press.

• rock
• world
• blues
• international
• african
• 2000s