While checking a few cd’s out the other day I noticed this one by legendary French producer Hector Zazou (who passed recently). Checking the credits on the back I noticed Wee Willie Reefer is involved. I assume Bill plays drums although I can’t be too sure as he’s a jack of all trades. I haven’t heard this album yet but would like to pick it up in the future.
Here’s a review which doesn’t mention Bill?..
Inviting four outstanding musicians from India and Uzbekistan, Hector Zazou and friends step into a virtual hall of mirrors in which sound is reflected from one note to another. Featuring Toir Kuziyev (tambur & oud), Milind Raykar (violin), Ronu Majumbar (flute) and Manish Pingle (Indian slide guitar), ‘In the House of Mirrors’ was recorded in Mumbai. Re-creation and fusion projects involving culturally embedded sounds can so easily turn into watered down world music by numbers, a worthy criticism of so many such releases on major labels as well as on specialist labels like ECM. Well forget all that and rest assured as what ‘In The House of Mirrors’ does is something very special indeed. Zazou not only assembles a cast of experienced and extremely talented instrumentalists from a number of cultures but gives them the opportunity and scope to utilise their instruments in the way that was originally intended whilst reproducing this sound in an authentic and (thankfully) non-glossy anti-Westernised pop approach.
Such specialist Asian sounds stem from a culture of music where time is free, not compacted and commoditised for commercial gain. As such, ‘In The House of Mirrors’ faithfully showcases tones that are naturally elongated to make drawn out and unhurried soundscapes which flow naturally in the music’s own personal time-zone. Such freedom gives the instruments a welcome and contextualising breathing space instead of curt and unnatural boundaries which restricts scope and the conveyance of meaning from the music.
What stands out about this release is that these unabated classical Asian sounds are enhanced by their delicate interaction with the subtlest of electronic treatments. From brushes of electroid flairs to subtle glitches, these electronic sounds add an intense sense of atmosphere, almost a kind of electricity, to proceedings thus accentuating the timbre of the traditional instrumentation. Zazou explains that “the use of electronic treatments and reflections interact with the way the musicians play, and reinforces the spiritual aspect of the music, just as church acoustics do with Gregorian chant”. Throughout its 10 track span, richly textured soundscapes arranged in a minimalist yet stirring vein, bob buoyantly and enchantingly like the texture of smoke. From the deliciously drone-laden ‘Attainable Border: South’ to the sparkling journey in the heart of darkness which is ‘Hool Ki Seva’, ‘In the House of Mirrors’ is consistently moody and evocative, as sounds bow and arc with a refined majesty that brings to mind visions of the Thar Desert coated in the rich navy blue and golden glow of dusk. Even though it was mentioned before that the tones are elongated and naturally spaced, this never means that music drifts without intention. Rather the instruments and deft electronics combine to weave a harmonious and deeply emotive tapestry steeped in the deep rooted traditions of the Eastern realm. The trembling resonance of the tambur, slide guitar and oud eschew a mystical and shadowy quality, a quality that sounds like the micro-vibrations of a thousand feathers and tugs at the heart strings with its melancholy fervor. The introduction of Spanish flutist Carlos Nuñez, Nils Petter Molvaer on trumpet, flamenco pianist Diego Amador and Hungarian violinist Zoltan Lantos serves to add an extra dimension, giving a distinctive sense of flair to soundscape.
Twenty-five years after laying the foundations for afro-electronic fusion and after many groundbreaking albums, Hector Zazou has succeeded in bringing a fresh and contemporary vision to the music of the East. Meddling with such organic sounds can lead to distressed results but Zazou and his group of talented musicians have perfectly captured the dark and mystical qualities of classical Asian music and have cleverly accentuated the deep-set atmosphere through the use of the subtlest micro-electronics and Western instrumentation. (KS)