Tinariwen scoop Uncut prize
Uncut magazine has named Imidiwan: Companions, the fourth
release from Tinariwen, as the most inspirational album of
2009.
Tinariwen are Touareg musicians and former guerrillas from the
Sahara Desert region of northern Mali.
Uncut 's Editor and chair of the judges Allan Jones said: "It's a
fantastically exciting record, full of great, powerful music,
passionately and brilliantly played. It had everything the judges
were looking for in a potential winner."
Imidiwan: Companions currently stands art No.9 in the
AnyDecentMusic All Time chart (ie of the year as our data goes back
to the end of 2008) with a rating of 8.2 from 12 reviews.
Tinariwen just pipped Grizzly Bear for the award. Fittingly the
Brooklyn acoustic experimental outfit are also at 8.2 on the
AnyDecentMusic All Time chart.
Another album which made the Uncut short list but lost out to
Mali's finest was Animal Collective's Merriweather Post Pavilion,
which leads Tinariwen with an 8.4 rating.
Of Imidiwan: Companions, Music OMH said: "This is life-enriching
stuff," while The Sunday Times said: "Tinariwen have created one of
the most distinctive, extraordinary and irresistible sounds in
modern music."
Read more here
http://www.anydecentmusic.com/review/462/Imidiwan-Companions.aspx
The full Uncut article is here
http://www.uncut.co.uk/news/tinariwen/news/13760