NEW ALBUMS
MAHER CISSOKO
Cissoko Heritage AJABU
7/10
Shimmering Afropop by kora maestro
Cissoko claims to be the 73rd generation of a Senegalese griot family of kora players – which, even allowing for exaggeration, is some heritage. Now resident in Stockholm, where he has recorded a quartet of albums with his Swedish wife Soussou, this solo set is full of virtuosic kora playing. Singing in a gentle baritone, his syncopated acoustic Afro-pop is heard to best effect on “Thiossane” and “Kano”, but he adds a little synth texture on “Kedo” and a Youssou N’Dour influence to the dance rhythms of “Dor Waar” before the dreamy lullaby “Mama” rounds out a pleasingly mixed bag of African enchantment.