A Six Degrees Collection: Asian Travels

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About A Six Degrees Collection: Asian Travels

Product description CD > POPULAR MUSIC > WORLD Amazon.com This compilation draws together musicians who incorporate traditional Indian music into modern styles. The emphasis is heavy on the U.K.-based Asian Underground scene, which is oriented towards electronic dance music, and many of the familiar names are here, often remixing one another--, , Kingsuk Biswas (a.k.a. Bedouin Ascent), , , and . Most of the music from that camp is excellent and a nice introduction to their style. By contrast, Fila Brazillia and Bob Holroyd wobble the line between ambient and dull. One real eye-opener is State of Bengal's remix of the track "Delerium" by Toronto-based Ken Ramm's Euphoria. Euphoria's approach is studio-crafted music in the contemporary electronic style, but acoustic slide guitar is the primary sonic material. The other contributors from outside the U.K. dance scene are more of a mixed bag. Qawwali master appears in a piece from a collaboration with , but his forays into modern sounds always conveyed a lot less of the ecstatic qualities of music than his more traditional records. Shankar's trademark Indian jazz fusion closes the CD and should appeal to fans of his style. --Bob Bannister