Once known only in West Africa by the moniker The Blind Couple from Mali, Amadou and Mariam have become Mali’s musical vanguard – popularising its thriving music scene and bringing themselves and their contemporaries out of the doldrums of the World Music shelves.  In fact, World Music is a bit of a misnomer and Amadou and Mariam opine for Music of the World as a more apt label for their sound, which is a peculiar an assimilation of many types of music. Their new LP, Welcome to Mali takes them on a musical journey through blues, rock, reggae and even electronica (courtesy of co-producer Damon Albarn). Dressed in exquisite Malian attire and sporting designer sunglasses, Amadou Bagayoko stops to talk to Dazed Digital about his music, his life and marriage on the road.

DD: How did the two of you meet and begin making music?
AB: We met in 1975 in the Blind Institute.I had some of my music on the radio and Miriam was a singing teacher. Music is what we shared and music is how we began our relationship.

DD: How did you develop such a broad musical vocabulary?
AB: I grew up with Jimmy Hendrix, James Brown and Led Zeppelin, all of which were played heavily on the radio in Mali in the 60s.

DD: Malian and Senegalese music like Ali Fakaturi and Salif Keita have been very successful in the word music scene in Europe.  Why do you think it is these African countries in particular have such great exports?
AB: West African and French cultures were heavily integrated, and this has caused Malian Music to be structured on the same blues scales as a lot of European and American Music. African music then began to affect European music, so our music had developed together and it becomes difficult to say who has really influenced who. Senegalese music is not based on the same structure so it’s difficult for me to say why it is popular, only that it is very good.

DD: Do you see ‘Welcome to Mali’ as a departure from your previous records in any way?
AB: We work with the same producer, Marc Antoine Moreau, on every album and the process is always the same: we lay down the guitar and voice but from then on we are open to other paths and other partners what other people can bring us.  For example, Damon brought electronic sounds to ‘Sabali’.  We have this open mind for every album, including this one.

DD: Does the title serve to generate attention more broadly in Malian music?
AB: Absolutely, we used the name to open the door to Mali – its culture, its civilisation and its music.

DD: Does your blindness affect the way you experience music or create music?
AB: The difference between the blind and the sighted is that it’s easier for the blind to concentrate – I appreciate the focus it gives me. The other part, is that when you are blind, music takes a larger place in your life because you don’t have books, films or visual art.

DD: Is your music politically motivated?
AB: We don’t have an ideology we sing about but values which affect our music. We stand for peace, solidarity, respect and love.

DD: What’s it like touring as husband and wife?
AB: It’s really not difficult at all. People often think it's crazy, but sharing this together makes things so much easier and we never feel lonely.

DD: Which UK artists do you like at the moment?
AB: I love UK Radio but I don’t know the names.  I love the Scissor Sisters, and I like old music like Genesis, ACDC and Phil Collins.