''Emmaar'' is the sixth album by the
Tuareg
The Tuareg people (; also spelled Twareg or Touareg; endonym: ''Imuhaɣ/Imušaɣ/Imašeɣăn/Imajeɣăn'') are a large Berber ethnic group that principally inhabit the Sahara in a vast area stretching from far southwestern Libya to southern A ...
band
Tinariwen
Tinariwen (Tamasheq: , with vowels , pronounced ''tinariwen'' "deserts", plural of ''ténéré'' "desert") is a collective of Tuareg musicians from the Sahara Desert region of northern Mali. Considered a pioneer of desert blues, the group's guita ...
, released in 2014. ''Emmaar'' is a Tuareg word meaning "the heat on the breeze".
It is their first full album not to be recorded in northern Africa.
[The Guardian review](_blank)
/ref>
After Tinariwen's previous album ''Tassili
Tassili n'Ajjer (Berber: ''Tassili n Ajjer'', ar, طاسيلي ناجر; "Plateau of rivers") is a national park in the Sahara desert, located on a vast plateau in southeastern Algeria. Having one of the most important groupings of prehistoric c ...
'' won the Grammy Award for Best World Music Album in 2012, the band was displaced by a Tuareg rebellion in their home region of northern Mali, with Islamist militants abducting guitarist Abdallah Ag Lamida. Other members of the band fled to the southwestern United States, writing and recording ''Emmaar'' in and around Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua Tree National Park is an American national park in southeastern California, east of San Bernardino and Los Angeles and north of Palm Springs, California, Palm Springs. It is named after the Joshua trees (''Yucca brevifolia'') native to t ...
, which features a desert environment similar to their homeland. The album's lyrics deal primarily with the band's exile and the political strife in their home country, and it includes guest contributions from Josh Klinghoffer
Josh Adam Klinghoffer (born October 3, 1979) is an American musician best known for being the guitarist for the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers from 2009 to 2019, with whom he recorded two studio albums, '' I'm with You'' (2011) and '' The Getaw ...
, Fats Kaplin
Fats Kaplin is an American musician, born in New York City. He is best known as a fiddler. He also plays guitar, button accordion, banjo, mandolin, steel guitar, an Arab oud, and a Turkish cümbüş, among others. He has worked with artists such as ...
, Matt Sweeney
Matt Sweeney (born July 2, 1969) is an American musician and record producer best known as a guitarist of Skunk, Chavez, and supergroup Zwan.
Early life and education
Sweeney was born in New Jersey. His father was John D. Sweeney, a professo ...
, and Saul Williams
Saul Stacey Williams (born February 29, 1972) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, musician, poet, writer, and actor. He is known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop, and for his lead roles in the 1998 independent film ''Slam'' ...
.
Track listing
Note: Tracks 12–14 are bonus tracks in some editions of the album.
Personnel
All information from album liner notes.
* Ibrahim Ag Alhabib – lead vocals and lead guitar (tracks 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10)
* Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni – lead vocals and lead guitar (tracks 2, 6, 8), backing vocals (all other tracks)
* Alhassane Ag Touhami – lead vocals and lead guitar (track 11), backing vocals (all other tracks)
* Eyadou Ag Leche – bass (all tracks), lead vocals and lead guitar (track 1), guitar (track 11), backing vocals (all tracks)
* Elaga Ag Hamid – guitar (all tracks), backing vocals (all tracks)
* Said Ag Ayad – percussion (all tracks), backing vocals (all tracks)
* Amar Chaoui – percussion (tracks 1, 2, 3, 7, 9, 10)
* Toulout Kiki – backing vocals (tracks 2, 10)
* Josh Klinghoffer
Josh Adam Klinghoffer (born October 3, 1979) is an American musician best known for being the guitarist for the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers from 2009 to 2019, with whom he recorded two studio albums, '' I'm with You'' (2011) and '' The Getaw ...
– guitar (tracks 1,4)
* Fats Kaplin
Fats Kaplin is an American musician, born in New York City. He is best known as a fiddler. He also plays guitar, button accordion, banjo, mandolin, steel guitar, an Arab oud, and a Turkish cümbüş, among others. He has worked with artists such as ...
– fiddle (track 8), pedal steel guitar (tracks 1, 7, 9)
* Matt Sweeney
Matt Sweeney (born July 2, 1969) is an American musician and record producer best known as a guitarist of Skunk, Chavez, and supergroup Zwan.
Early life and education
Sweeney was born in New Jersey. His father was John D. Sweeney, a professo ...
– guitar (track 10)
* Saul Williams
Saul Stacey Williams (born February 29, 1972) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, musician, poet, writer, and actor. He is known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop, and for his lead roles in the 1998 independent film ''Slam'' ...
– vocals (track 1)
References
{{Authority control
2014 albums
Tinariwen albums
Anti- (record label) albums