Name: Music in Exile
Brand: Songhoy Blues

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

TRANS192TXX

Colour

Magenta

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: Yes

Extended format

Extended format: Yes

Format detail

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2025-01-03

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

PIAS

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

5400863169459

Total Cap

9999

Magenta LP | Rough Trade Exclusive

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Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format: No

2015-02-23

5414939858925

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1 / CD / Extended format: No / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No

Artist

Songhoy Blues

Genre GB

African

Label GB

Transgressive

Songhoy Blues is a desert blues music group hailing from Timbuktu, Mali. With their infectious rhythms and soulful melodies, they have become one of the most prominent voices in the genre. Drawing inspiration from traditional Malian music as well as rock and roll influences, Songhoy Blues creates a unique sound that captivates audiences around the world.

Similar to other notable artists such as Imarhan, Oumou Sangaré, Les Amazones d'Afrique, and Boubacar Traoré, Songhoy Blues brings a fresh perspective to African music. Their powerful performances showcase their immense talent and passion for their craft.

With influences ranging from Ali Farka Touré to Tinariwen, Songhoy Blues continues to push boundaries and redefine what it means to be an African artist in today's global music scene. Whether you're a fan of traditional African sounds or simply appreciate great music, *Songhoy Blues* is an artist you won't want to miss.

Transgressive is a record label founded by Tim Dellow, Toby Langley and Lilas Bourboulon, with a focus on discovering and nurturing new talent, Transgressive has become known for its diverse roster of artists spanning various genres. The label has been responsible for launching the careers of several successful musicians and continues to be at the forefront of the music industry. For more information about the company's credits, please visit their profile page.

Newest Listed Items

Vinyl variants, bonus material and signed editions exclusively available from Rough Trade.

Once one of the most prominent and powerful of Mali's many ethnic groups, the Songhoy, who hail from the banks of the Niger River between the ancient cities of Timbuktu and Gao, have suffered a long slow decline since their apogee in the 6th and 17th centuries. Hailing from the heart of old Gao, Oumar Toure and Aliou Toure were, like most kids growing up in the ancient city, obsessed with hip-hop, R&amp;B and bands like The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix. By their early 20s, having met young guitarist Garba Toure (son of Oumar Toure, long term percussionist in Ali Farka Toure's band), they began to make music while at university in Bamako. 

Their deep attachment to the home grown songs and dances of the Songhoy, both traditional styles and the modern guitar based sounds popularised by the likes of Baba Salah and above all Ali Farka Toure, was helping shape their nascent music which sought to blend the trad and the modern, the homegrown and the foreign, the youthful and the ancient. The growing unrest in the north of Mali saw Oumar, Aliou, Garba and many of their family take refuge down south in Bamako as hostilities worsened in early 2012 and Songhoy Blues were born from this adversity. "We met up (in Bamako)," remembers Garba, "and told ourselves we couldn't just stay shipwrecked by a crisis like this. We had to form a band." They roped in a young drummer called Nathanial 'Nat' Dembele from Bamako and baptised their band Songhoy Blues in celebration of their displaced people and culture. Soon a fixture on the Bamako club and bar live music treadmill, their break came in September 2013 when French music manager Marc-Antoine Moreau was in the city to scout for musical talent on behalf of Africa Express. 

Prompted by local studio owner Barou Diallo. Aliou Toure cold-called Marc- Antoine - an audition quickly followed and subsequently the band were invited to record a song with Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the track, Soubour, ended up as opening track on the Africa Express album, Maison des Jeunes. All those old 'world music' prejudices have no place here. Songhoy Blues are four talented, hungry, sharp and outward-looking young men from a part of the world that has had more than it's share and pain and conflict in recent years. But it has given far more than its share of music and joy to the world in return over the past four decades. That place may seem strange, alien and 'exotic' to some but deep down, Songhoy Blues are a familiar proposition: four young men, guitar, drums, bass and vocals, driving rhythms, big hearts and a story to tell.

Music in Exile

Music GB

Discover Music in Exile by Songhoy Blues on Transgressive. Available in CD and LP formats, including Rough Trade Exclusive. A blend of traditional and modern sounds from Mali's talented youth.