Albums by Champs and various artists playing folk music from the Sahel

CHAMPS Vamala (PIAS) Brothers Michael and David Champion, who hail from England’s Isle of Wight, got their start playing folk-pop that often reflects the lush, beautiful, and somewhat melancholy nature of the coastal landscapes there. Vamala follows the same currents as their 2014 debut,

Down Like Gold , but they’ve made a few important adjustments to their sound that helps propel it into the ranks of 2015’s very best albums to date. They ditch the two-part harmonies that made some of Down Like Gold ’s material come across like a poor Xerox of Simon and Garfunkel, and instead give Michael’s incredible timbre the full spotlight while relegating David’s fine voice to a supporting role. They’ve also replaced the more chipper folk-pop songs with stark synth-pop. This aesthetic shift not only gives them a more modern, of-the-moment feel, but also suits their talents better. Opening track “Desire” clocks in at dance-floor-friendly tempos, with layers of slick bass lines providing an ideal foundation for Michael’s moving, androgynous vocals, which here slip into the naked fragility of Yoko Ono’s dance songs. “Sophia” and “Running” strengthen the duo’s position with bold piano, prominent percussion, and sinewy guitar lines. Songs such as “Forever Be Upstanding at the Door” return them to their folky roots, and “Send Me Down” brings a gospel influence to the fore. Whatever musical guise they don, it all works by virtue of improved songwriting and a stronger sense of self. — Robert Ker

VARIOUS ARTISTS Folk Music of the Sahel 1: Niger (Sublime Frequencies) With his world-music label Sublime Frequencies, Hisham Mayet has become something of a cross between Alan Lomax and Anthony Bourdain, traveling to war-torn landscapes to record popular and ritual music in Africa and the Middle East. In the process, he exposes the musicians he encounters to wider audiences in Europe and North America. For the debut of his ambitious new project — a planned six-volume series surveying the musical landscape of Niger’s Sahel region, famed for its mix of nomadic animist and Afro-Islamic cultures — Mayet has released a trove of field recordings he collected over the past decade. The album includes live recordings of griots, or praise singers, whose improvised, hand-percussion-backed performances blend storytelling, gossip, and commentary on local events. An astonishing cut from Koudede, a popular Tuareg guitarist killed last year in a car accident, showcases his haunting, Arabic-infused, bluesy songs that made him a local hero. Songs to back the courtship dances of the Wodaabe tribe as well as several call-and-response choruses, syncopated to oil-can drums, round out this collection. — Casey Sanchez