Jill Turner switches on the Television and reviews Baaba Maal's latest album. Baaba Maal is a traveller not only with his United Nations work but as a season ticket holder onboard the Africa Express. He stole the show with a sensational appearance as part of this year’s UK African Soul Rebels tour and was recently invited as a guest on Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs in March. By now, we were beside ourselves with anticipation of his new album, it’s been a long time, eight years in fact since Missing You. Yes we have been, but now the new album is here, will Television be the album to divide opinion ?

MC Melstar couldn't wait to review this one. She knows what its like to cut it as an MC, amongst the male posturing in the hip hop scene. Together with her Wolof dictionary she listens to Sarabah - Tales from the Flipside of Paradise, the new release from Sister Fa, Senegal's Queen of Hip Hop. Does it get the thumbs up? ...read more

Adrian Phillips reflects that some creative marriages are just meant to be; Galton & Simpson, Gilbert & Sullivan, Little & Large! OK maybe not the last one, but you get my drift...so what of Realworld's latest pairing...

Adrian Phillips listens to Tchamantche, from Rokia Traore, winner of Best Artist in this year's Songline's awards and finds his life changing in the process......

Melstar finds a skip in her step as she sings and nods along to the mellow grooves and dancefloor burners, of Comfusoes, a project to remix Angolan pop from the 60's and 70's by cutting edge producers from Brazil....does it work...read on..

Adrian Phillips has a listen to not one but two new releases by Baka Beyond and aserts that western artists like Peter Gabriel, One Giant Leap and Simon ‘Afro-Celt’ Emerson have often used original field recordings as the basis for many a finished track, but never have they released them in their own right - cue a flood of emails to the contrary.

Jaqui Wickes reviews the latest in Strut Records’ ‘Inspiration Information’ collaborations which brings together Ethiopian Jazz Master, Mulatu Astatke and UK based music collective Heliocentrics to create a veritable smorgasbord of musical styles and sounds.

Mark Gibbens wishes the box and dulcimer were more common pairings as he listens to Sand & Soil the new album by Maclaine Colston and Saul Rose. Dulcimer and melodeon virtuosos respectively, Sand and Soil has been a long time a brewing and it's clear that its a product of a lot of careful work.

Adrian Phillips hopes that Kasse Mady's Manden Djeli Kan, his first release since 2002 redresses the balance and gains him more recognition. Lauded by Blur’s Damon Albarn, Mali’s Kasse Maddy Diabate talents have been somewhat overshadowed in the West by his better known relative Toumani Diabate.

Adrian Phillips says, "don’t let the alarming image of a donkey’s jaw on the cover of Neuvos Sonidos Afro Peruanos by Radio Kijada put you off, the sounds within are vibrant, varied and vital".