So I've been into this band for about a year or so called Tinarawin from Mali. If you could imagine Carlos Santana coming from Mali/Niger, you've got the sound. It totally has that nomadic, stuck in the desert type sound (is that even a sound...? it is when you hear it).
Anyways, these dudes are really interesting and here is a short "documentary" clip on them. There is a second part and there is another one that is like 20 minutes long or something. Check it out at least for the music and the way these dudes live when they're not on tour.