Liya Ag Ablil (aka Diara) played in the internationally renowned Tuareg rock band Tinariwen for twenty years, before leaving to form Terakaft. He brought with him his distinctive style of electric guitar, which is as stark and wild as the desert landscape of northern Mali where he grew up. “A world made of light, dust, goats, tree shadows, gas, tea and fire,” as their bio puts it, “where teenagers don’t dream of being footballers but guitarists.”
‘Jagwar’, the latest release by Terakaft on Marseille label/radio station Secousse, is both a new single and a celebration of the band’s history. It combines a 7″ record of a new song (backed with a special acoustic version) and a book by Philippe Brix, the band’s tour manager for the last two decades. Ultimately, the package is a “coming-of-age story,” as the album notes put it, “a tale of resilience, of doom, of family, of utmost tensions and unrivaled peace, the adventure of a life time.” Saharan cowboy music which understands the persistent power of the guitar. “A Kalashnikov has thirty bullets in a magazine; once you’ve emptied it, it’s over,” Diara says. “A guitar has no limits.”
