Ba Cissoko

With a nod to Jimi Hendrix, Ba Cissoko's band revs up the tempo, fires up a plugged-in and wah-wah-ed-out kora (Sekou Kouyate's), and knocks the griot's ancestors out of the water. The Guinean band had already made waves with Sabolan, but 2007's Electric Griot Land was even more beautifully realized. It was by turns hypnotic and hip, tapping into Somali-Canadian rapper K'naan's cool on "Silani" one minute and bringing a reggae vibe on "On Veut Se Marier" the next. With two koras at its disposal and a boatload of attitude, this group's substance is matched only by its adventurousness.