It wasn't until they traveled to Dakhla and started to canvass Sahrawis shop owners that they got lucky. One of them called a small boy over who led them to a studio where they might find out some information. It was there they finally met Doueh.

While they might share Hendrix as an influence with the Tuareg groups, the results are quite different. This is a rawer, more aggressive sound that is reflective of their ongoing struggle for survival. Unlike the Tuareg, who have gained some support from both government of Mali and the international community, the Sahrawis are alone in their struggle, and it comes through in Goup Doueh's music.

Some of the songs contain rhythmic elements that we in the West have come to associate with the Arab world, and some of the vocal patterns seem to be in a similar vein, but they have an element of discordance I've not heard before in music from this part of the world. Doueh himself will on occasion use his guitar like a blunt instrument; harsh chords struck in counterpoint to a lyric. On other occasions the guitar becomes almost a third background vocalist, adding its high notes to the women's high, wailed lyrics.

From song to song you can hear the influences change and perhaps the intent as well. Track six, "Wazan Samat," is maybe the most Western sounding of them all, and also the most playful. The women lead a call and response vocal, which has definite pop elements to it. The very next track, "Sabah Lala," is far more intense, with Doueh singing and playing fast and furious over the steady beat. His voice is chocked with emotion that sounds like a mixture of anger and grief.

The production values are of an almost universally poor quality. Hisham Mayet recorded two of the eight songs in Doueh's studio. While they are the cleanest, it sounds like they used just one microphone to record the whole group because the vocals sound like they are being sung from far away. The other six tracks are taken from Doueh's archives, and they were either recorded without anyone monitoring levels or by someone who didn't know how to control them. Volumes on vocals are pushed so loud they distort something awful, as does the guitar. While feedback and distortion can be effective when used deliberately, they just sound bad when they are the result of carelessness.