For Yous Ranjit Barot - 2010 Bada Boom

He was the rhythmic centre of John McLaughlin's Floating Point (Abstract Logix, 2008)—an album that flora the fusion guitar corking exploring his decades-long involvement inward an east/west nexus from the electrified together with harmony-centric angle of the jazz tradition, rather than the opposing angle of his longstanding together with largely acoustic Shakti together with Remember Shakti groups, which weighed to a greater extent than heavily on Indian music's linearity together with polyrhythmic complexity. Now, reflecting Ranjit Barot's assimilation of the fusion together with progressive stone music that he heard growing upwards with his inescapable roots at a similar mitochondrial level, Bada Boom farther clarifies the Indian drummer's simpatico with McLaughlin. The 2 artists clearly percentage mutual ground, exactly come upwards to it from near-diametrically contrary ends of the broadest possible spectrum of musical together with cultural upbringing.

Bada Boom may live on Barot's debut as a leader, exactly reflects his lengthy together with busy career as session player, celluloid marking composer together with producer inward his native India. Just similar Floating Point, Bada Boom brings together a grouping of musicians from around the world. Here, however, Barot collects a much larger international cast, including—along with good over a dozen Indian musicians—American guitarist Wayne Krantz, British saxophonist Tim Garland, Scottish pianist Gwilym Simcock, Turkish-born/American resident keyboardist Aydin Essen...and, of course, McLaughlin, who guests on "Singularity," as appropriately named a disputation of intent as an album opener tin dismiss be. As with much of Barot's writing, it's episodic together with cinematic, roofing considerable the world inward its relatively brief 8 minutes. Moving from visceral, 9/8, introductory riff—driven past times bassist Matthew Garrison together with Barot's thundering kit—to airy interlude, with Garrison delivering a brief exactly stunning solo, Barot's konnakol (Indian vocal percussion) shifts the song's gears, yet again, into a groove-laden middle section, where solos from veena thespian Punya Srinivas together with pianist Harmeet Manseta advise both polarity together with commonality to live on flora alongside Indian musicians mining both ends of the east/west continuum. Returning to the initial subject powerfulness appear predictable, exactly exclusively until a staggering closing segment, where McLaughlin engages inward some incendiary gratis play with Barot, makes clear that zippo is as it seems.

Similarly, nylon-string guitarist Amit Heri together with flautist Palakkad Sreeram plough the foremost of "T = 0" into a pastoral contrast to "Singularity"'s burning intensity, fifty-fifty when The Nirvana String Section, Barot's soaring vocals together with Dominique di Piazza's fretless bass expand the sonic landscape. But, again, it's wonderfully deceptive, as the fourth dimension thus doubles together with a raga-informed subject emerges, with Di Piazza magically combining pulse together with high octane melodic foil. Soprano saxophonist Garland together with electrical mandolinist U. Rajesh solo with, respectively, vehement bebop chops together with almost impossible, lightning-fast dexterity, leading to a whammy bar-driven solo from guitarist Marc Guillermont over a culminating combination of this traditional composition's 2 movements that illustrates Barot's shrewd organisation skills.

And that's exclusively one-third of Bada Boom's far-reaching combination of thoughtful writing, outstanding performances, together with a cultural purview that goes beyond the to a greater extent than obvious mix of Indian tradition together with western jazz interests. At in i lawsuit exhilaratingly cathartic together with transcendentally beautiful, Bada Boom is an ambitious debut—fusion at the deepest, together with truest, feel of the word.

Fusion together with classical Indian rhythms merge on this spectacular confluence of styles. Drummer Ranjit Barot erupts on the opening East-meets-West salvo “Singularity,” a time-shifting seat out with blazing solos from electrical bassist Matthew Garrison, veena main Punya Srinivas together with guitar corking John McLaughlin. The Nirvana String Section adds majesty to the proceedings on “T = O,” which features a staggering solo from electrical mandolinist U. Srinivas. “Revolutions,” inward retention of Charlie Mariano, is a modern reworking of a traditional Carnatic number, patch “Supernova,” with Remember Shakti bandmates Srinivas together with tabla main Zakir Hussain, is a tribute to the legendary Ustad Alla Rakha. Tim Garland’s 15-piece Underground Orchestra punctuates the ambitious “Dark Matter,” a rails that besides showcases Barot’s South Indian konnakol vocals. 

Ever since Shakti I stimulate got been fascinated past times Carnatic fusion. It is a really rare together with especial type of music that takes as rare together with especial musicians to play it. Many stimulate got stepped upwards to the plate, exactly the torch was passed (IMO) to Shawn Lane + Jonas Hellborg. It may live on bold to say, exactly after Lane's passing I am at nowadays confident it lies with Barot together with Hellborg.

To live on fair, I resisted reviewing it forthwith to assist gauge the album's longevity... together with the bottomline is I soundless nous to it frequently. Overall I uncovering the concept of the album really interesting together with I dear hearing how it flows together with progresses to the the in conclusion conclusion. Being a fusion fan I am no stranger to listening to some of the most depression character "self produced" or "bootlegged exactly thus later" released recordings. With that said i of the album's highlights is the production, it is astounding.

Bottomline:
Bada Boom has Great production, songwriting, orbit together with originality. H5N1 serious competitor for album of the yr (top five at least). GET IT! 

Track Listing:

1. Singularity;
2. T = 0;
3. Revolutions (In retention of Charlie Mariano);
4. Supernova (in retention of "Abbaji" Ustad Allarakha);
5. Dark Matter;
6. Origin.

Personnel:

Ranjit Barot: drums, vocals (1, 2, 4), konnakol (1, 5), keyboard programming (1, 2), keyboards (3, 6), atomic number 82 vocals (6);
John McLaughlin: guitar (1);
Matthew Garrison: bass (1);
Mattias IA Eklundh: guitar (1);
Palakkad Sreeram: VL1 physical modeling synthesizer (1, 2), flute (2), vocals (5);
Harmeet Manseta: keyboards (1-3), pianoforte solo (1), pianoforte (4), electrical pianoforte (5);
Sanjay Divecha: guitar (1), acoustic guitars (3);
Punya Srinivas: veena (1);
The Nirvana String Section (1, 2, 4);
Tim Garland: soprano saxophone (2), tenor saxophone (4), saxophones (5), flute (5);
Dominique Di Piazza: bass (2);
U. Rajesh: electrical mandolin (2);
Marc Guillermont: guitar (2);
Amit Heri: acoustic guitar (2);
Pete Lockett: percussion (2);
Aydin Essen: keyboards (3);
 Sridhar Parthasarthy: Indian percussion (3), djembe (3), percussion organisation (3), percussion (6); Taufique Qureshi: djembe (3), percussion (3, 4), vocal textures (4);
Suzanne D'mello: atomic number 82 vocals (3), backing vocals (3);
Samantha Edwards: backing vocals (3);
Thomson Andrews: backing vocals (3);
Leon DeSouza: backing vocals (3);
Thiru Moorthy: nadaswaram (3);
Zakir Hussain; tabular array (4);
U Srinivas: electrical mandolin (4);
Elie Afif: upright bass (4);
Chandana Bala: vocal solo (4);
Paras Nath: flute (4);
Gwilym Simcock: pianoforte (5);
Mohini Dey: bass (5);
Dhruv Ghanekar: guitar (5);
Tim Garland's Underground Orchestra Horn Section (5);
Scott Kinsey: keyboards (6);
Wayne Krantz: guitar (6);
Nicolas Fiszman: bass (6);
Kirti Sagathia: vocals (6);
Neuman Pinto: backing vocals (6);
Bianca Gomes: backing vocals (6).