Khruangbin, Vieux Farka Touré share Tongo Barra single

Released on Dead Oceans and Night Time Stories, ‘Tongo Barra’ is available for streaming and download. The song follows the album’s lead single ‘Savanne’, which arrived in July. Rendered in the Malian Songhai dialect, ‘Tongo Barra’ comes in at nearly six minutes, building on ‘Savanne’’s expansive and meditative character.

Comprising eight songs, Ali is forged in the ground-breaking desert blues mould pioneered by Ali Farka Touré. The sound merges traditional Malian musical styles with distinct elements of the blues, and is sung in the local languages of Songhay, Tamasheq, Fulfulde and Bambara. 

Ali is described by its composers as a “refreshed West African blend of musical reference the pairing hopes reaches new generations and audiences alike.” The album is due on 23 September, a day after Mali’s Independence Day.

Ali has already established itself as one of the most anticipated releases of the pairing’s celebrated careers, with ‘Savanne’ earning widespread acclaim upon its release. NPR Music praised its “labyrinthine fusion of dub, blues and Malian grooves”. Fader called the song “a mesmeric five minutes of music that manages to float dreamily to its finish without ever losing its harmonic and rhythmic moorings.”

With each new project, Khruangbin and Vieux, who recently played a sold-out show in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, broaden their horizons, embracing new challenges and further entrenching their shared reputation as some of the world’s most innovative musicians. 

In February, Khruangbin released their second collaborative EP with soul singer Leon Bridges, the sultry, chart-topping Texas Moon, which garnered widespread critical acclaim and pushed the boundaries of the R&B sound.

This June, Vieux released his latest album Les Racines on which he masterfully returns to the deep roots of the desert blues that his father introduced to the world, touching on his country’s overlapping security, political and humanitarian crises.

Pre-order Ali here.