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Sitar Power 1 - A Fusion of Rock and Indian Music by Ashwin Batish
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fave it World Fusion | World Beat
7 tracks | 45 minutes
Released Jan 2006
on Batish Records
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- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 09:15 Bombay Boogie lyrics BUY MP3 09:15 Bombay Boogie lyrics "GIFT MP3" 09:15 Bombay Boogie
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 04:14 Casbah Shuffle lyrics BUY MP3 04:14 Casbah Shuffle lyrics "GIFT MP3" 04:14 Casbah Shuffle
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 04:50 Raga Rock lyrics BUY MP3 04:50 Raga Rock lyrics "GIFT MP3" 04:50 Raga Rock
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 04:30 Sitharmony lyrics BUY MP3 04:30 Sitharmony lyrics "GIFT MP3" 04:30 Sitharmony
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 08:08 New Delhi Vice lyrics BUY MP3 08:08 New Delhi Vice lyrics "GIFT MP3" 08:08 New Delhi Vice
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 05:28 India Beat lyrics BUY MP3 05:28 India Beat lyrics "GIFT MP3" 05:28 India Beat
- sample lyrics "DOWNLOAD" 09:03 Sitar Magic lyrics BUY MP3 09:03 Sitar Magic lyrics "GIFT MP3" 09:03 Sitar Magic
Sitar Power is a mind blowing mix of modern funk gadgetry and classical Eastern flavor - CMJ, NY.
Editorial review
There was a period of time when the sitar, or at least the cheapo electric guitar version of it, was heard on practically every pop hit. But disregarding this curious part of pop history, the creation of any kind of hybrid of American and Indian music has happened mostly in India, not in America. Something of a minor hit for an independent album when it was first released, Sitar Power is one of the few breakthroughs that happened on the American continent, courtesy of a talented and charming gent whose connection to the aforementioned Indian pop influence was pretty direct: Ashwin Batish's father was one of the Indian musicians who worked on the Beatles' Help! soundtrack. The multi-tracking and arrangements that Batish so meticulously created on this set of instrumentals are almost as much of a marvel as his exciting, technically stunning sitar work. All the same there is something cheesy about these accompaniments, although that is part of the charm, like the British style of serving chips at a curry house. One unforgettable image of Batish over the years was a private demonstration he provided for a Canadian Broadcasting Company host while performing at the Winnipeg Folk Festival. Seated on a stool in the midst of an empty prairie, Batish played rapid-fire sitar licks over the top of what sounded like a full-band backing, all coming out of a set of sequencers and effects racks in a small box at his feet. He seems to be one of those multi-trackers that spends forever working on pieces and sometimes never stops tinkering, which might explain why he only completed two volumes of music such as this when there is clearly a demand for more. In that sense the success of this album is also a nice part of the '80s home-taping scene, Batish establishing an early mastery of the type of new recording technology that would move many artists out of the realm of the recording studio for good. In addition, the strength that indie labels had in the '80s was also one of the reasons that a record such as this, at first released on the artist's own Batish label, eventually would pick up something of a global following, including the popularity of the "Bombay Boogie" track at the hippest German discos. Sifting through all these positives, a listener can be an alchemist and attempt to isolate the gold or single element that makes this project work so well. The inevitable answer is Batish himself -- beyond the instrumental virtuosity, his joy with what he is doing comes across as a specific within the general sense of his exuberant personality. ~ Eugene Chadbourne, All Music Guide
Bio / Background
It's powerful, it's magical! .... Stops you dead in your tracks the first time you hear it .... Batish rips on the Sitar" - Tower Records, Pulse.
"Sitar Power is a mind blowing mix of modern funk gadgetry and classical Eastern flavor. This is no novelty. Batish has been called a sitar master by fellow musicians and critics alike." - CMJ, NY
Bombay Born Ashwin Batish rocked the airwaves with his debut album Sitar Power 1 in 1986. This album drew rave reviews for its innovative stance and as one of the pioneering albums in the Worldbeat genre that successfully fused the classical sitar music of India with rock. This re-release on CD is done by popular demand following the recent release of his Sitar Power 2 CD!
This CD was also awarded honorable mention by the National Association of Independant Record Distributors.
Ashwin Batish is an extraordinary sitarist and tabla player. He received training in the North Indian classical tradition from his father S.D.
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