As a descendant of a prominent line of over twenty generations of Moorish griots (Saharan praise singers, poets, and musicians), Mauritanian Noura Mint was basically born a musician, learning her unique vocal technique from her grandmother, and mastering the ardine, a harp reserved only for women, at a very early age. On 2016’s Arbina, Mints’ soaring vocals are accompanied by tight rock drumming, deep bass, her own sparkling ardine, and her husband Jeich Ould Chighaly’s psych guitar, which he plays in the style of a  tidinit, a Mauritanian lute similar to the ngoni. Arbina is a trailblazing record, but one still firmly rooted in Mauritania’s musical tradition. 

– Megan Iacobini de Fazio