andrew interchill
IsraTrance Junior Member
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Posted : Oct 29, 2010 00:09
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Review from Music Media Monthly
The Suns of Arqa, led by bassist and producer Michael Wadada, has been on the cutting edge of reggae-dub-Asian fusion music since the late 1970s; the band played back-up to the great reggae deejay Prince Far I for his last show before he was murdered in 1982, and ever since that period they have continued to investigate ways of bringing the heavyweight basslines and throbbing rhythms of reggae to various Indian musical traditions. Purists of all stripes may turn up the nose, but at its best this is richly evocative and deeply satisfying music—and never more so than on Know Thyself? (Interchill ichill cd 040). Featuring bansuri master Raghunath Seth, this album presents four ragas; in each case, the traditional three sections are presented without pause between them; the arrhythmic exposition segues seamlessly into the metrically regular middle section and then into a faster and more rhythmically intricate final section. The reggae-flavored basslines are kept to a tasteful minimum here, so as to keep the ear focused on Seth’s gorgeously woody-sounding bamboo flute. The result is a musical tableau that rewards both close listening and meditative drifting. (Grade: A-)
– Rick Anderson |
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