From the first glorious tumble of notes on ‘The Path of Gabou’, a track about a son's search for his father, it's clear that this solo album by the UK-based Senegalese kora maestro Seckou Keita is going to be something special. Emboldened by critical acclaim and awards for previous works including, most notably, his recent collaboration with Welsh harpist Catrin Finch, Keita delivers a beautifully crafted album laced with light and shade, tonal reach and groove. The legacy of seven generations of kora-playing griots, the musician caste of West Africa, are here in 10 glorious self-penned tracks, just as Keita's progressive aesthetic – distortion, speedy passages, wah-wah pedals – takes this West African harp smartly into the 21st century. The conventional kora has 21 strings; unusually, Keita's instrument, from his birthplace in southern Senegal and Guinea Bissau, has 22. This extra string is wielded with fine aim and purpose, like a beautiful weapon.