Dobet Gnahoré

"Na Afriki"; Cumbancha

Three and a half stars

Dobet Gnahoré's voice is the sound of another generation of Africa coming to the forefront. She's by no means the first singer to offer a bold and cosmopolitan blend of African and Western pop, with a touch of traditional sound, but she's certainly one of the best. Gnahoré was raised in an artist colony in Ivory Coast, and she is backed by a band that includes her French guitarist husband. They play a happily multicultural kind of music that has a little of everywhere in it. Gnahoré's vocal strength ranges wide linguistically and stylistically as she roams from the nimble exhilaration of tropical Africa to the restrained calm of arid regions to graceful refreshing lightness right out of her own vagabond's heart.

RIYL: Angelique Kidjo, Daby Touré, Sally Nyolo

-- Gifford