| Elwan | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 10 February 2017 (2017-02-10) | |||
| Recorded | United States, France, Morocco | |||
| Genre | African blues, desert blues, world | |||
| Length | 46:10 | |||
| Label | Anti/Epitaph | |||
| Tinariwen chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 86/100[1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
| Exclaim! | 8/10[3] |
| The Guardian | [4] |
| Pitchfork | 8.2/10[5] |
Elwan is the seventh album by the Tuareg band Tinariwen, released in 2017.[6] The title means "elephants" in Tamashek and the term is used as a metaphor for militias and corporations that have trampled the fragile natural and human ecosystems of the desert.[7] The album was partially recorded in Joshua Tree National Park (as was its predecessor Emmaar) with additional recording in Paris, France and M'hamed El Ghizlane, Morocco.[8] The album includes guest appearances by Matt Sweeney, Kurt Vile, Mark Lanegan, and Alain Johannes.[7] One reviewer called the album "devastatingly beautiful,"[7] and another described the album as "musing on the values of ancestry, unity and fellowship, driven by the infectiously hypnotic cyclical guitar grooves that wind like creepers around their poetic imagery."[9] AllMusic named Elwan as one of the best albums of 2017.[10]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Tiwàyyen" | Ibrahim Ag Alhabib / Eyadou Ag Leche | 3:45 |
| 2. | "Sastanàqqàm" | Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni | 3:24 |
| 3. | "Nizzagh Ijbal" | Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni | 3:39 |
| 4. | "Hayati" | Ibrahim Ag Alhabib / Moulay El Wafi | 3:23 |
| 5. | "Ittus" | Hassan Ag Touhami | 3:45 |
| 6. | "Ténéré Tàqqàl" | Ibrahim Ag Alhabib | 4:25 |
| 7. | "Imidiwàn n-àkall-in" | Ibrahim Ag Alhabib | 3:33 |
| 8. | "Talyat" | Ibrahim Ag Alhabib | 4:14 |
| 9. | "Assàwt" | Abdallah Ag Alhousseyni | 3:39 |
| 10. | "Arhegh ad annàgh" | Ibrahim Ag Alhabib | 2:47 |
| 11. | "Nànnuflày" | Eyadou Ag Leche / Mark Lanegan | 5:03 |
| 12. | "Fog Edaghàn (Intro Flute)" | Tinariwen | 1:26 |
| 13. | "Fog Edaghàn" | Tinariwen | 3:07 |
Note: Tracks 12–13 are bonus tracks in some editions of the album.
All information from album liner notes.[11]
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[12] | 31 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[13] | 68 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[14] | 87 |
| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[15] | 104 |
| USHeatseekers Albums (Billboard)[16] | 10 |
| USIndependent Albums (Billboard)[17] | 36 |
