Within seconds of entering the room, the sense of anticipation was palpable. One felt sure that some exciting Congolese rhythms were certain to banish any rainy-day blues. The band made their way on to the stage, nonchalantly picked up their instruments and began to play their opening number, sung by…

Filming performances to be broadcast to viewers at home who can still feel somewhat part of the party is not novel. Boiler Room, the flagship online platform for underground acts to increase their exposure, tapped into a pre-existing appetite amongst the try-before-you-buy internet generation but that doesn’t negate the impact…

Womad, the world’s festival, once again sparkled the Wiltshire countryside with an array of international musicians. In what was one of the driest Womads in recent years, highlights came from the headliners to the warm-up acts, creating an inclusive and illuminating festival. The first thing of note was the changes…

An inaugural festival is always going to be packed with risk and suspense, and after the downpour that Friday night experienced, a breath was held in anticipation of Saturday’s events. However, it is with sheer delight I report that the proceedings seemingly went ahead seamlessly. Saturday I have to jump…

Spread across different venues in London Fields throughout Saturday the 3rd of August, Visions Festival is the perfect day out with an eclectic lineup. This is what caught my attention about the festival, with acts coming from all different genres, from Algerian desert rockers Imarhan to visionary jazz orchestra Steam Down,…

At times, we are the first to lose track of how many exciting music events happen in London each month, so we have decided to offer you some sort of “public musical service”, meant for all the locals and passers-by, with the aim of suggesting where to listen to some…

S H I R A N sings in the language of dreams of freedom. Sharing tales of her family and her community’s journey from Yemen to Israel, she tells stories of desire, determination and hope that never age. Through electronica-inflected Israeli pop, she conjures up dark minimalist landscapes similar to…

Friday The site was nicely spread out, but unlike mega festivals, walking from one side to another did not diminish too much energy or take too long. Unfortunately, the festival’s app didn’t want to show me the 2018 line-up – it instead rubbed in the fact that A Tribe Called…

Colours rise from dark contours as a London jazz renaissance takes form. Feeling both early and late, We Out Here captures the tones of this evolving shape.  Tenor saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings directs the way, bringing together a collection of his most in-demand friends on the new-jazz scene. Familiar names such…

Embraced by the Alps Mountains in the North-western area of Italy, Turin is a city marked by its aristocratic past and industrial history. This contrast best represents the city’s multiple facets: richness and poverty, innovation and tradition, history and modernity all living together in one place. This blend and mix…

We’ve partnered with Groovalizacion Radio to bring you a monthly collection of the best world music-related videos. That’s our way to give value to too often overlooked, rich and diverse artistic expressions. Listen with your eyes! Watch the full playlist:

Back in 2013, the story of Songhoy Blues made the headlines. After being forced to move to Bamako by a jihadist group that banned music in northern Mali, Garba Touré founded the band “to recreate that lost ambience of the north and make all the refugees relive those northern songs”….

The concept behind the AfroCubism collaboration is to celebrate and unite some of Mali and Cuba’s hottest musicians and to explore their shared spirit of Afro-Cuban soul. In the Sixties, socialist Mali politics had close links to those of the new communist Cuban government, creating strong ties between the two…

Transparent Water, a meeting between Cuban jazz pianist Omar Sosa and versatile Senegalese kora player Seckou Keita, is a delightful sounding album that lures the listener into an enchanted sonorous world. Keita has made his mark in recent years as a sensitive collaborator (with Welsh harpist Katrin Finch, for example),…

If your music is strong enough to overcome religious fundamentalism and exile, how can a narrow-minded visa denial possibly harm it? That’s why Songhoy Blues, without their original bass player (who was stuck in Bamako because of an issue with his documents) performed a show to remember at Omeara. Introduced expertly,…

On the eve of the release of his latest album Transparent Water, Senégalese kora player, percussionist and singer Seckou Keita was packing to fly to Paris for some radio sessions and shows in France – when he managed to find a moment to talk to Rhythm Passport about the latest of his many…

Housed beneath stained glass by sunset-red rays and drifting smoke, AKA Trio spent an unforgettable night with their Islington audience for Joyful Noise’s  London African Music Festival. Taking to the stage in one of the city’s most celestial venues, Union Chapel, they performed a range of music inspired by their African…

Although the story behind how Aliou Touré, Garba Touré, Oumar Touré and Nathaneal Dembélé became Songhoy Blues is not all roses — they were forced to fled to the capital Bamako after northern Mali was occupied by jihadists — their music is everything but sorrowful. A sold-out Roundhouse could not…