Here's one to get you dancing: BOLLYWOOD FANTASIA, from SNAKES AND LADDERS, the brand new CD from Australian Bebop Ragas, one of didgeridu virtuoso Stephen Kent's collaborations (www.stephenkent.net). This grouping features Teed Rockwell on Chapman Stick, Sameer Gupta on tablas and trap, and Stephen Kent on didgeridu and percussion. In addition to tablas, Gupta is a jazz drummer, and this shows up in sections which to me feel a bit uncomfortable, like rhythmic freefall; jazz afficianados love it. My other favorite track is DOWNTOWN NEW DELHI, another one to get your toes tappin'. It's rich with musical imagery of a bustling international city. SNAKES AND LADDERS is three powerhouse musicians blending flavours of Australia and India with ancient sounds for ambiance and a savory dash of jazz - YUM! I find Kent's music to be constantly evolving, eclectic and inspired. His decades-long exploration of integrating didgeridu into contemporary music honors the Aboriginal origins of this remarkably simple and confoundingly complex instrument while departing entirely from it's traditional use. His 2004 release, OIL & WATER, moves from didge grooves into Tuvan throat singing into Sufi devotional song into Scottish bagpipes, with other wonders along the way. 2002's SONGS FROM THE BURNT EARTH is pure, unadulterated didgeridu, recorded in various cave environments. This sound evolved, five years later, into the 2007 release LIVING LABYRINTHS, a meditative journey with computer enhancements, unknowingly recorded live at the Summer Solstice celebration in the Chapel of the Chimes in San Francisco. Coming along soon is another collaboration, Baraka Moon, with Middle Eastern sounds. And these are only SOME of his works. What will he think of next?
Sorry you don't like the hip hop on the BA. Thing is, a lot of listeners DO like/love hip hop, and it's pretty much impossible to do a "beats oriented" show responsibly without playing hip hop. Hip hop has supplanted rock 'n' roll as the biggest musical influence/movement in the world. Go to any country, and the music young people are listening to is influenced by hip hop. And while there's plenty of rap junk, the BA plays the gems of hip hop, the innovators, the rappers who spread positive messages, all that. Word.
3 Comments:
PLEEEEEZE -No more RAP, HipHop. It hurts my ears all the way to the tips of my toes.
Here's one to get you dancing: BOLLYWOOD FANTASIA, from SNAKES AND LADDERS, the brand new CD from Australian Bebop Ragas, one of didgeridu virtuoso Stephen Kent's collaborations (www.stephenkent.net). This grouping features Teed Rockwell on Chapman Stick, Sameer Gupta on tablas and trap, and Stephen Kent on didgeridu and percussion. In addition to tablas, Gupta is a jazz drummer, and this shows up in sections which to me feel a bit uncomfortable, like rhythmic freefall; jazz afficianados love it. My other favorite track is DOWNTOWN NEW DELHI, another one to get your toes tappin'. It's rich with musical imagery of a bustling international city. SNAKES AND LADDERS is three powerhouse musicians blending flavours of Australia and India with ancient sounds for ambiance and a savory dash of jazz - YUM!
I find Kent's music to be constantly evolving, eclectic and inspired. His decades-long exploration of integrating didgeridu into contemporary music honors the Aboriginal origins of this remarkably simple and confoundingly complex instrument while departing entirely from it's traditional use. His 2004 release, OIL & WATER, moves from didge grooves into Tuvan throat singing into Sufi devotional song into Scottish bagpipes, with other wonders along the way. 2002's SONGS FROM THE BURNT EARTH is pure, unadulterated didgeridu, recorded in various cave environments. This sound evolved, five years later, into the 2007 release LIVING LABYRINTHS, a meditative journey with computer enhancements, unknowingly recorded live at the Summer Solstice celebration in the Chapel of the Chimes in San Francisco. Coming along soon is another collaboration, Baraka Moon, with Middle Eastern sounds. And these are only SOME of his works. What will he think of next?
~ Jennifer
Anon -
Sorry you don't like the hip hop on the BA. Thing is, a lot of listeners DO like/love hip hop, and it's pretty much impossible to do a "beats oriented" show responsibly without playing hip hop. Hip hop has supplanted rock 'n' roll as the biggest musical influence/movement in the world. Go to any country, and the music young people are listening to is influenced by hip hop. And while there's plenty of rap junk, the BA plays the gems of hip hop, the innovators, the rappers who spread positive messages, all that. Word.
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