Africa express – Page 2

The term ‘world music’ is outdated and offensive

Published in The Guardian (March 23, 2012) Life’s a mashup these days, isn’t it? Not just online but in the real world too. From arts to science, from […]

Another top ten albums of 2011 list

Published on The Spectator website (December 18th, 2011) Picking my favourite albums this year reminded me of three things about the current state of music. First, the obvious […]

Arts / Music

Spotify Sunday: Shuffle…

Published on The Spectator website (April 16th, 2011) Like many music fans, I could spend months pondering a playlist and coming up with dozens of variations. Since I […]

Africa / Arts / Music / Nigeria

A wild shrine to music, history and the struggle for human rights

Published in The Independent (June 5th, 2009) We bumped our way down the ramshackle streets of Ikeja in the traffic-choked megacity of Lagos, and there it was: the […]

Africa / Arts / Congo / Music

Music from the heart of the Congo

Published in The Independent (February 29th, 2008) The tiny stage was packed as a heavy, dancehall rhythm rumbled out into the Kinshasa night. There was Damon Albarn on […]

Africa / Arts / Mali / Music

Journey into the beating heart of Africa

Published in The Independent (October 13th, 2006) We ducked into a covered alleyway, where two elderly men with grizzled beards, skullcaps and indigo robes lay on straw mats. […]