Black Mango – Quicksand (Gustaff, 2022)
Black Mango is the world fusion project of French percussionist and producer Philippe Sanmiguel. He has been based in Bamako for sixteen years and produced the albums by acclaimed Malian bluesman Samba Touré as well as rising Malian talent. On Black Mango, Sanmiguel skillfully combines a captivating, transfixing set of atmospheric rock, dub techniques, blues, and Malian traditional music. Vocals are in Malian languages, English and French.
Quicksand features many of Samiguel’s musician friends and collaborators, including Samba Touré, Songhai artist Anansy Cissé; singer Mariam Koné; vocalist Bocar Sana Coulibaly and guitarist Ali Traoré (Espoirs de Niafunké) from Niafunké, nephews of the legendary Ali Farka Touré.
Musicians on Quicksand include: Philippe Sanmiguel on vocals and percussion; Bocar Sana Coulibaly, Anansy Cissé, and Mariam Koné; Djimé Sissoko and Oumar Koïta on ngoni; Samba Touré, Ali Traoré, and Anansy Cissé on guitars; Mamadou Sidibé, Abdramane Touré and Konan Kouassi on bass; Djimé Sissoko, Lassine Kouyaté & Moctar Sissoko on tamani (talking drums); Hugo Race on guitars, organ, synthesizers and vocals; Zoumana Tereta on soku (fiddle); and Hans Mulders on drums.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.