Mahakali Orchestra - Shiva's Dream (Sub.Strates) [Nu-Jazz]

The Mahakali Orchestra name harks back to the last century, possibly before, but the music, despite being jazz-heavy, is anything but pale pastiche.. The project is the brain child of multi-instrumentalist, producer and Charles F. Moreland III who is equally adept on the bass, modular synths and esraj (don't worry, I had to look it up too), with a fondness, like so many jazz and countercultural icons of fifty plus years ago, for melting South Asian vibes into Western music, in this case, his eclectic electronic, ambient and jazz compostions.

This is the second single from the Mahakali Orchestra, which includes Kiran Shahi on drums, Ashesh Rai - tabla, Kirby Davis blowing hard on tenor saxophone, James Dillon on guitar and Jacob O'Donnell with his flute, and it's a BANGER. Think Roni Size in the studio with Ornette Coleman on an Indo-Nu-Death-Jazz mission and you're about there. The musicians had fun with this one; Rai and Shahi gamely busting a gut to keep up with the D&B programme, Davis going red in the face, as Dillon and Moreland break finger-moving speed records. If only London's jazz dance scene was still popping.

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Playlist Companion

Find the in the Slow Jazz Playlist.