Fire up your narghile (hookah, shisha) and settle back for some compelling arabic melodies and rhythms, performed by Kaazim Zareb, by profession a bellydance accompanist, who in this creative departure brings a jazzy improvisational flavor to mellow arabic art music. These tracks were produced and/or remixed by Thomas Park of Mystified and C.P. McDill of Webbed Hand Records. These tracks blend elements of traditional Middle Eastern musical idioms with contemporary electronica mixing style.
Recorded by Kaazim Zareb Tracks 1, 6, 7-9 produced by T. Park Tracks 2-5, 10 produced by CP McDill "Samai Nahawand" composed by Ruhi al-Khammash, transcribed by Issa Boulos. Michael Fair performed in "Tareeq Sahraawee." "In Depths" composed by Al Cutillo (Note: Kaazim Z has been trying to reach Al Cutillo. If you are him or know him, please write to info@kekuja.com).
Thank you for listening to this Webbed Hand Records release. Please visit the WHR homepage to explore our complete catalog of experimental and ambient recordings. All of our music is free to download, but we'd be very grateful if you could make a small donation (via Paypal) to help with the costs of maintaining a netlabel.
"it's rare that i come across a record that i have to tear myself away from. unfortunately this is the case with kaazim zareb's miraaya.
this entire record is coated in reverberating, echoy middle eastern indian music remixed by mystified and cp mcdill. the contrasts of bass and treble play together like lights and shadows, intertwining and complimenting each other where each melody, texture, or drone threatens to overpower the other. there's a perfect balance found on this record of drama and beauty, again much like shadow and light play.
upon first listen, i immediately drew the comparison to early dead can dance and peter gabriel's passion album. though i wouldn't say that miraaya is as dark or as dramatic as either of those comparisons. like a lot of classical jazz music that conjures mental images and memories of early spring, so does miraaya in that it's lighthearted without losing it's sense of identity. the rhythms are subtle, tribal, deliberate, and trance-inducing. unlike most indian-esque music, where one would normally hear walls of frantic sitar, in it's place is wandering flute and clarinet drones.
the music is perfect for lazy sunday afternoons and may induce spontaneous outbreaks of yoga sessions while listening. i highly recommend this album for any one into world music and experimental jazz. if you frequently find yourself listening to NPR and enjoying the obscure music one will most likely hear on that radio station, then this is definitely your cup of tea...
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Reviewer:knisterwerk - - August 29, 2005 Subject: Mehr davon ... :-) Eine Veröffentlichung mit solchen traditionellen Klängen hat Seltenheitswert. Mehr davon ... :-)
Reviewer:Silver Fox - - June 12, 2005 Subject: deeply satisfying... one can imagine the caravan moving over the dunes, rolling through the heat of the dusk. The sweat drips down, the flute rolls you back up like an ocean. One just might have to strip down and do some belly dancing after this one!
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