Fangnawa Experience

After releasing a clutch of remarkable records that explored and reinterpreted the classic sounds of West African pop music, the French Afrobeat ensemble Fanga embarked on a full-length collaboration with Moroccan musician Maalem Abdallah Guinea. (The band first encountered Guinea performing at 2011's Detours Du Monde festival.) Guinea is a master of the guembri, a three-stringed lute with an elastic, bass-heavy sound characteristic of Gnawa music, a traditional form of Islamic devotional song noted for its trance-like qualities. With its meandering incantations and long-form improvising, Gnawa might not seem a natural match for Fanga’s punchy Afro-funk, yet Fangnawa Experience is a surprisingly successful collaboration. Most of these songs stretch well past eight minutes, while the hypnotic album opener “Noble Tree” and the gently loping “Gnawi” each approach 15 minutes. This free-flowing approach suits both Fanga and Guinea, letting Fanga push the boundaries of Afrobeat and giving Guinea an exciting new context in which to present traditional Gnawa forms.