Huffington Post,
CD Review
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Well over a year ago I was sent a beautiful two-disc/one-DVD package from an imaginative label based in India called Earthsync. The first release on its roster was an intercultural gaze at the musical cultures affected by the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Thailand, Myanmar, Maldives and India. Dubbed Laya Project, the 20 songs featured a broad range of native folk styles tempered in the studio, as if Alan Lomax was offered a sizable budget and eighty more years of technology. In that time this album has become a favorite of mine; all songs are richly textured and cinematically treated, mostly avoiding the dangers of the expectable (foreign vocals, big strings, boring beat). The accompanying documentary is simply stunning. The shots are exquisite, the musicians lively and passionate. Plenty of love for music and culture comes across in songs like the percussively rich "A New Day" and the gorgeous sitar-dugga play and vocals on "Hai La Sa," a fisherman's song tuned with deep bass. A track like "Tapatam" may set a dance floor or two on fire, but the real winner, both sonically and vibe-wise, is the devotional "Ya Allah," as you can hear for yourself below. 07/14/10
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