Aman Iman: Water is Life

Tinariwen | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 20, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: World Village USA
• ASIN: B000MCICRE
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #18,520 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #12 in Music > World Music > Africa > Mali
  • #42 in Music > World Music > Africa > General AAS
  • #43 in Music > World Music > Africa > General

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

When you hear this music clan -- group just doesn't seem to be the right designation for a band of nomad desert musicians/soldiers –- a listener can hear the calm of the desert night air and the serenity of the musicians who live there. The Taureg people truly seem to be of the land and never more so than here on the band's third album, Aman Iman. The loping percussion and the circular guitar lines conjure wide-open desert images evoked in the repetitive grooves. Some may grumble that the members are playing much as they did on the first and second albums, blending Arabic song structures, desert wails, and primordial blues guitar riffs, but for it to be any different would be akin to asking the people in Tinariwen to change who they are. Never have words been truer than those of the title, but this album also appends that sentiment, proving that music is life for the desert Taureg too. --Tad Hendrickson

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Guitars of the Empty Spaces, March 25, 2007

By 

doomsdayer520 (Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Aman Iman: Water is Life (Audio CD)

If you're bored with American rockers who like to pretend that they're sticking it to the man, make yourself familiar with the lyrical and musical wonders of Tinariwen. Made up of former freedom fighters in the quest for the independence of the Touareg people from the colonialist regimes of North Africa, the musicians of Tinariwen possess a true revolutionary wisdom that Americans can only dream about, as they really have been persecuted by the authorities in their home country of Mali. Tinariwen also has a very unique musical history. Legend has it that early in their history as a band, the musicians happened to come across a stash of old blues records and dilapidated electric guitars, all of which had been unknown in their country. Tinariwen has combined a unique interpretation of the blues, homegrown guitar and bass techniques, and the traditional music of the Touareg people - thus creating a relentlessly fascinating sound that is as sparse and haunting as the immense Saharan landscape in which they dwell.

The liner notes for this album state that many of the songs were written over Tinariwen's 25-year history. Since they were not able to record professional-quality releases until recent years, it appears that Tinariwen has spread this extensive backlog across their recent releases. Therefore, this album sounds very similar to Tinariwen's last album, the equally fascinating Amassakoul. But rest assured that more is definitely better in the case of this band's equally exotic and accessible music. Established fans will especially appreciate the songs on this album that illustrate Tinariwen's effortless ability to branch out and expand their vision. The opener "Cler Achel" is a swinging blues-rock workout that is sparsely percussive and nearly funky, "Toumast" incorporates haunting effects from dub reggae, and "Assouf" features some wicked wah-wah that sounds like what Jimi Hendrix might have come up with if he had traveled with Brian Jones or Robert Plant through the Sahara. The masterful and exotic Touareg style of vocal arrangement is also prevalent throughout this album, particularly in "Imidiwan Winakalin" and "Awa Didjen." Tinariwen deliver music that is truly revolutionary - especially for listeners who crave enlightenment through intriguing and exotic new sounds. [~doosmdayer520~]

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hypnotic and enthralling, May 12, 2007

By 

popculturemaven "from trash to high art, I'm ... (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Aman Iman: Water is Life (Audio CD)

Tinariwen has often been described as "John Lee Hooker in the Sahara." While that baseline is a decent enough introduction, it's not nearly enough to embrace this band. This album follows Amassakoul, my first Tinariwen CD, and Aman Iman surpasses Amassakoul in every way. Depending on your mood, the music is soothing, hypnotic, challenging and stirring. The variations worked on repetitive figures reward repeated listening. If you haven't heard Tinariwen, Aman Iman is a great place to start.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Startlingly bluesy., April 26, 2008

By 

latejazzlover (San Francisco , CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Aman Iman: Water is Life (Audio CD)

This startlingly bluesy album reflects the sharper focus their sound has recently achieved. Guitars underpin everything, with solo voices rising out in defiance or exaltation: the opening homage to a freedom fighter killed in 1995 is marvellously eloquent, as are the appeals for peace and the hope for a future return to the homeland.
With many of the tracks recorded in the open air at night in the desert, this is an album with a rugged, epic atmosphere all of its own.
Is this to be the band that punches through the glass ceiling that has kept world music out of the mainstream? "Yes!" shout its supporters. And since its "discovery" six years ago, this group of one-time Touareg guerrilla fighters has deservedly risen to the top of the world music charts.
The liner notes honour their subject-matter by not only giving the full lyrics both in translation and in the vernacular, but also making a stab at rendering them in the ancient Touareg alphabet. The sound is beautifully mastered.The mainstream should be so lucky.
Rokku Mi Rokka
Afriki
Segu Blue
Savane
The Mande Variations
The Garifuna Women's Project