It’s a way of relegating this ‘thing’ into the realm of something exotic and therefore cute, weird but safe, because exotica is beautiful but irrelevant.”

-David Byrne on the term “World Music”

Although I wouldn’t go as far as 100% agreeing to what Byrne says, I do think that the lumping of music anywhere outside North America/Europe and branding it “world” neglects to acknowledge the diversity of sound from different regions as well as being pretty damn condescending. Putting South American rhythms, Asian pentatonic scale-based tunes, and Caspian region instrumentation all under the same moniker is like saying drone metal, indie-pop, and electronica can be classified in a sub-genre — which no matter how hard you try, Sunn O))))‘s music is nowhere near comparable to that of of Montreal.

So after hearing respectable critics claim the latest album from Bassekou Kouyate and his ngoni group is “a contender for African album of the year” or “there’s unlikely to be a better African album this year”, it just makes my blood boil. I Speak Fula is one of the best albums anywhere, period. No qualifications necessary.

Now I’m not going to sit here and tell you I’m an expert on the nuanced sound of the ngoni (for that, head on over to the good folks at NPR), but I know good music when I hear it. I Speak Fula is filled with so many intricate rhythms and delicate melodies produced by that tiny gourd string instrument that it’s tough to keep count. At times enlisting the help of famed musicians Toumani Diabaté and Vieux Farka Touré — both of which put on killer live shows that I can personally vouch for — the album features a who’s who of modern day musical Malians whose collaborations produce some of the best tracks on the record.

In an effort to not embarrass myself further due to my lack of West African music knowledge, I am just going to give you a listen to their track “Musow” to better show you how mind blowing Kouyate & Co. are:

Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba // Musow

We’ve all had those moments waking up late on a Saturday morning after a long night of partying where the only plans for the day is laying on the couch, mindlessly surfing the net, and drifting in and out of sleep. Well my new mix Laid & Paid: Weak ‘n Mixxx is the soundtrack for these times — keeping it nice and chill so not to exacerbate the hungover headaches.

You can download the mix directly from here (EDIT: rapidshare seems to be having problems this morning, so here’s a more direct link) and after which sit back, relax, and enjoy the 75+ of smooth tunes while drinking your Bloody Marys and downing your Ibuprofen. There’s a good blend of foreign/domestic, popular/obscure, full-band/instrumentals, so you’re sure to be able to pick up a couple of new favorites while revisiting some classic songs you might not have heard in a while. Here’s the tracklist:

Jóvenes y Sexys // El Reloj
Mountain Man // Animal Tracks
jj // Let Go
Jens Lekman // Jag Tyckte Hon Sa Lönnlöv
Broken Bells // The High Road
Acid House Kings // The Heart Is a Stone
Cryin’ Sam Collins // Lonesome Road
Sara Lov // My Body Is a Cage (Arcade Fire Cover)
El Perro del Mar // From the Valley to the Stars
The Wave Pictures // Just Like a Drummer
Woods // The Dark
Beach House // Gila
Chromatic Flights // I Am a Rock (Simon & Garfunkel Cover)
Man Man // Doo Right
Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba // Bambugu Blues
The Knife // Vegetarian Restaurant
A Studio // Self Service (Short Version)
Run DMT // St. James
Cass McCombs // Don’t Vote
Moonface // Marimba and Shit-Drums (Excerpt)
Ducktails // On the Boardwalk
jj // My Way

If you like the mix, check out the Pre-Party one I did a month ago.