"Shez Raja is a maestro, marrying profound themes with stunning bass technique..." so wrote Bass Player Magazine. Readers of the very same bass playing bible voted him as "one of the hottest bass players in the world" which makes him very hot indeed.
Although Raja has collaborated with musicians of the calibre of Randy Brecker and Mike Stern, for this album he journeyed to The Punjab to explore his identity and immerse himself in the musical culture of his roots.
It was in Lahore that he met up with some of the most accomplished musicians on the subcontinent to record this album.
It's an intriguing set which western ears may not attune to on first hearing. Nevertheless, it's worth persevering with. Raja certainly lives up to the hype but for me, the standout moments are the bansuri passages by Papu which compare favourably with many a solo by conventional flautists both jazz and classical.
Check it out - not once, but twice!
Lance
The album is on Ubuntu Music UBU077 and is due for release on March 19 with a launch at the 606 on June 4.
Later in the year (Sept. 5) Raja plays Ronnie Scott's in the more conventional company of John Etheridge (guitar); Tony Kofi (alto sax); Vasilis Xenopoulos (tenor sax); Lewis Moody (keys); Sophie Alloway (drums).
No comments :
Post a Comment