Damon Albarn, Brian Eno, Nick Zinner, Holy Other, Idris Elba, More Making Album in Mali

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Photo by Kirstie Shanley

Damon Albarn's globe-trotting musical adventures continue. As The Guardian reports, Albarn is currently in Bamako, capital of the African country Mali, where he is making an album with Brian Eno, Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Nick Zinner, Holy Other, Idris Elba from "The Wire", and other artists, including local Mali musicians. The record is a continuation of Albarn's Africa Express project, where western and African artists collaborate. (Last year it resulted in a train tour across the UK). Watch video of the recording sessions here.

According to The Guardian, the group is working at a community center, Maison des Jeunes, near the River Niger. Last year, Mali experienced significant political turmoil when it was "seized by a motley alliance of Islamists and Tuareg rebels, the president ousted in a coup and the country almost breaking in half," The Guardian writes. Of the situation, Albarn said, "At times it has felt odd in Bamako, with the problems in the north, but I'm just trying to personally establish dialogue with the people in this country and the music."

Eno also offered a statement:

I was quite surprised coming here how broken the place is... How the streets are terrible. The open sewers stink. It's very disheartening in a way. But what is really strong here is social infrastructure—it's so powerful and rich. My feeling is that Malian music draws attention to the richness of that social capital, and if you listen to it, you realise something about this society really is sorted.

Africa Express will perform October 19 at the Fiesta Des Suds in Marseille, France. The performance will feature Albarn, Zinner, Rachid Taha, Fatoumata Diawara, the Noisettes, Django Django, Tony Allen, Bassekou Kouyate, and more.

Watch a documentary on Africa Express:

[url=http://pitchfork.com/news/52637-damon-albarn-brian-eno-nick-zinner-holy-other-idris-elba-more-making-album-in-mali/]View the full article[/url]