Magg Tekki

Description

Assiko Golden Band de Grand Yoff is the percussion collective that electrifies the Dakar nightlife scene. Senegalese poet Djiby Ly (Wau Wau Collectif) is backed by fourteen different percussion instruments, as well as brass, winds, a balafon, and, occasionally, an accordion, combining the spiritually elevated polyrhythms of Count Ossie with the orchestra of Fela Kuti and the groove of Tony Allen. The band builds its songs on ancient rhythms passed down from Senegal, Cameroon, and the infamous island of Gorée. In Wolof and French, Djiby preaches a message of upliftment and cooperation rooted in the Sufi teachings of the Mouride brotherhood, as well as in Christianity and animistic religions. For twenty years and across three generations of band members, Assiko has been playing wild jams at weddings, secret parties, and political gatherings. However, this is their first album, a collaboration with Swedish musician and archivist Karl-Jonas Winqvist (Sing A Song Fighter). Vital, exciting, and innovative, the band is rooted in a very specific community but speaks to the whole world.