MOG Editorial Review

Between his crossover collaborations with the likes of Paul Simon and Peter Gabriel as well as his recent desires to becomes president of his native Senegal, few African artists are as iconic as Youssou N'Dour. What's more, 1990's Set capture the essence of N'Dour better than anything else, a no-frills Afro-pop record that still manages to pack in influences from around the world. Like the best music coming out of the continent, Set captured the sentiments of a nation's youth that fused its own culture with everything from hip-hop to Latin jazz, resulting in the frantic joy of the title track and standout "Xale." Without even knowing about the terms mbalax or sabar (the former of which N'Dour helped shape), it's hard to deny that Set contains the excitement of an idea coming to fruition.