'Frique out!

Here are some other highlights of Nuits d'Afrique's 10-day run (check listings for times and prices):

Thursday, July 15: The opening night sees Mali's Amadou and Mariam, the blind husband-and-wife team who once backed up Salif Keib, joined by Senegalese griot Boubacar Diabate and friends (replacing Oumon Songare, who has fallen ill).

Friday, July 16: Composer/keyboardist Ray Lema, who's worked with Police-man Stewart Copeland and fused Afro-trad and Euro-classical (and pulled it off!), now joins the Tyour Gnaouas for a dose of Moroccan mysticism, also at Le Medley.

Tuesday, July 20: Benin's gorgeous crossover queen, Angélique Kidjo, brings her smooth blend of motherland tradition and new world funk to the Spectrum.

Saturday, July 24: At 7pm, Juno-winner Eval Manigat and his band Tchaka celebrate the links between African, Caribbean and Latin music at Place Émilie-Gamelin (Berri & Ste-Catherine), where all the free outdoor stuff is going on.

Sunday, July 25: More Gnaoua trance-action, care of Les Nomades, at Place Émilie-Gamelin, mid-afternoon. Those wanting a more hands-on approach to Arabic music should check Nazir Bouchareb's Moroccan instrument workshop, same place, 11am. The festival closes with a crazy double-header: first Haiti's politicized voodoo-poppers Boukman Eksperyans at 7pm, followed by South African sensations Bayete.

--Rupert Bottenberg