If you haven't heard of Tinariwen, the 7-piece band of Tuareg
nomads from the Sahara Desert, check it out—their hypnotic grooves are
among the deepest I've ever heard. Grab a bass and take a minute to
zone out on this 1-bar vamp, which approximates bassist Eyadou Ag
Leche's groove on "Cler Achel."
There's lots to love about this one-bar
subhook. (I'm especially digging beat three's double hammer-on.) Look
at the scale Leche uses—aside from the 'blue-note' passing tones in
those hammer-ons, listen for how that B in beat four sets it apart from
those cliche minor pentatonic riffs we've all been known to employ.
In
April, the band will be taking a quick tour around the United States,
starting April 16th for the San Francisco Jazz Festival. As for me,
I'll be checking out their Santa Cruz performance the next day. If the
band's coming anywhere near your town, go and get your groove on!
