Algeria's shy superstar blossoms

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"This is about someone who is young and lost and asking questions about their future," said the dark-haired singer/songwriter, introducing Hayati (My Life) with playful, laughing confidence. Those at the back of the room craned their necks for a sightline; seated low, Massi and her three male accompanists were barely visible - except via the odd aloft mobile phone.

But this was a resolutely acoustic set, coinciding with an Acoustic Best Of album. Intimate and pared down, it seemed to suit the Paris-based exile better than her full band. Her guitar playing, with its frills and curlicues, benefited from the extra space in her French-and Arabic-language songs.

Augmented by duelling lead guitar, alternate oud and banjo and earthy North African percussion from Rabah Khalfa, her music blended cultures but stayed true to its Maghreb roots.

The voice, too, was richer, more spine-tingling than ever. Long world music's most fragrant performer, Souad Massi has come into her own.

Souad Massi
The Jazz Cafe
Parkway, Camden, NW1 7PG