Album Reviews

Omara “Bombino” Moctar has become one of the most talked about Tuareg guitarists in just a couple of years. They made a movie about him and now there’s the man’s third album, recorded in Nashville with The Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach.

I’m not a big fan of world music but “Nomad” is an album that will appeal to all the rock lovers out there thanks to the hypnotic rhythms and vaguely Hendrix-inspired guitar licks. Plus it helps that you can just hear the smiles on these guys’ faces through the speakers. Sung in Moctar’s local Tamasheq dialect, I couldn’t tell you what the songs were about if my life depended on it but rather than being an inconvenience, it helps add to the album’s charm. Throw in some Southern twang courtesy of a lap steel and you’ve got yourself a highly entertaining album that’s solid from start to finish.