By Ross Simonini

The Tuareg are a nomadic people who’ve wandered the Sahara for more than a thousand years—from Niger to Sudan to Mali and back. Their traditional music uses unusual instruments like the imzad (a single-string fiddle) and tinde drum, and a repetitive, trance-like vocal style. Formed in the ‘70s, Ensemble Tartit are probably the most likeable of the traditional bands and their recent disc Amarat (out this year on the fantastic Crammed label) is straight-up Saharan freak-folk. But most of the instantly satisfying Tuareg music comes from bands like Tinariwen, who ditched the traditional instruments, picked up electric guitars, and built a new genre simply called “guitar.” African guitars are normally twangy and clean; these have dirty-blues distortion that usually comes out of American amps. Earlier this year, Tinariwen released Aman Iman, a foot-stomping, hand-clapping albumthat every Devendra Banhard fan should own. A documentary, Teshumara, or the Guitars of the Revolution, also came out recently. It captures Tuareg musicians’ plight – from struggling for independence from Mali’s government to opening for the Rolling Stones.