Marigot Club Dakar

Back for a second hit, Senegal's Daby Balde offers something a little different this time around, music he often plays at the club of the album's title (and the club's name derives from a river in Balde's native Casamance region of the country, just to keep everything close to home). This is less glossy than his debut, but still exquisitely textured, relying not just on Balde's excellent singing and acoustic guitar playing, but also violin, sax (which, remarkably, doesn't sound out of place), more guitars, female vocals, and even the kora harp, calabash, and drum set to fill out the sound. As he's shown before, he's very adept at mixing the music of the West and Africa, bringing a light sophistication and cosmopolitan attitude to his music, while still managing to make it feel rooted--no mean feat. There's plenty of shade and light to the arrangements, and for anyone planning on traveling, there's even a drink token from the Marigot Club. If the music there is all as good as this, it's an extra reason to visit.