Tuareg rockers Tinariwen are renowned the world over for their seamless meld of American country and blues with North African folk. On Amatssou (or “Beyond The Fear”), the band’s desert blues vision is at its most clear skied and grooviest yet.

The emphatic rhythms of Western canons are filtered through the sands and microtonal scales of North Africa, where rivers of twanging plucks, lilting strings, and sighing pedal steel courtesy of Daniel Lanois soar throughout.

This is a highly communal music, with lyrics calling for unity over adventurous, wide-panning instrumentals.