Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba

(Triple Door) Backed by Sub Pop, the Jon Kertzer—run world-music imprint Next Ambiance debuted with Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba's recently released I Speak Fula. The disc abounds with sprightly, spidery melodies and intricate gritty male/silky female vocal interplay in a tongue you probably can't understand, but you can certainly feel its pleasant timbre and vivid emotional tenor. While much of I Speak Fula moves at a fairly dignified gallop, tracks like "Musow" and "Saro" should raise shredders' pulses with its frantic plucking and quicksilver, crystalline ngonis (West African wooden lutes). The Mali-based Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba create mostly uplifting music, but it's tinged with an underlying bluesiness that keeps it from getting annoyingly gleeful. They achieve this delicate balance with magnificent poise and skill. DAVE SEGAL