You might think he suddenly appeared out of the woods but Vieux Farka Touréhas been honing and waiting to unleash his skills for years. As Vieux may well be aware, when you're the son of an internationally acclaimed music star- a la Fela/Femi Kuti and Bob/Damian Marley-you have big shoes to fill. Though his father- the late, great Ali Farka Touré- may have been a super-star on the world music stage, Vieux's debut carries the Malian blues music of the elder Touré's time into a new age.

Desert blues never sounded so fresh-infused with reggae and rock. He collaborated with his father on the Tabara and Diallo tracks. He also worked with master of the kora, Toumani Diabaté, and a slew of veteran and young Malian talents. Vieux's keen musical gifts are well displayed on this album, the edginess of his electric guitar rushes through your veins while the bluesy trumpets and flutes make for that "feel good" sensation.

While Vieux is certainly set to follow in his two-time Grammy-winning father's footsteps, his success will be on his own terms-with his own niche and his own voice.