In the late 1980s, local label Sub Pop introduced the Seattle sound to the world. The label's latest project, an imprint called Next Ambiance, is equally ambitious. Looking to break through the aural clutter that crowds so much amazing international music out of the American market, Next Ambiance recently debuted with "I Speak Fula" by Mali's Bassekou Kouyate, a hard-charging masterpiece by a revered griot.
One of West Africa's elite performers, Kouyate has transformed the ngoni, the banjo's direct ancestor, from a background instrument traditionally played seated into a frontline ax wielded while prowling the stage. His acoustic band Ngoni Ba performs with the rollicking energy of an R&B combo and the call-and-response cadence of a gospel ensemble (historically, of course, the influence runs the other way across the Atlantic).
Kouyate celebrates the release of "I Speak Fula" Tuesday night at the Triple Door, where he makes his Seattle debut with his eight-piece band, which also features his wife, the powerful vocalist Amy Sacko.
"[Sub Pop co-founder] Jon Poneman and I have talked about collaborating and putting out more international music for years," says KEXP's Jon Kertzer, Next Ambiance's A&R director, who also led the Afropop band Je Ka Jo. "Bassekou was the crucial ingredient that made us act on it. He's got a long history in African music but has become well known in Europe in the last three years."
Kouyate has not only transformed the ngoni's role in Mali through his own band and collaborations with kora master Toumani Diabaté and rising guitarist Vieux Farka Touré. He's also serving as a musical ambassador through upcoming appearances with Western artists such as Bill Frisell and various blues musicians at the centennial celebration of Howling Wolf at Chicago's Millennium Stage in June.
Reached by phone while touring with banjo star Béla Fleck, who features him on his Grammy Award-nominated project exploring the banjo's African roots, "Throw Down Your Heart," Kouyate proudly claimed his heritage as a jeli, or griot, a lineage stretching back to the expansive 13th century empire founded by Sundiata Keita.
"The ngoni is the griot's identity," Bassekou says. "Even before we had writing, we had the ngoni in our countries. But I was the first ngoni player to lead a band. I created my own way of playing it, which is different from my father's and my grandfather's. Now there are many bands led by ngoni players."
At the beginning of a 47-city tour, Bassekou is confident that his bluesy, syncopated sound will connect with North American audiences.
"My music is pentatonic," he says. "It's the same thing as American music, so I'm ready to play my music in the United States."
03/15/10 >> 
