Best known for his work with Delhi 2 Dublin, Tarun Nayar’s latest solo album, the esoterically titled, 22 Degrees of Beatitude, is definitely more Delhi than Dublin. His press release describes the new album as a “decade-long evolution of sounds that blend culture, beats, and bass,” which, “aims to break boundaries and bring people together.” Of course, to my ear that’s what he’s always done, but this time his work seems more personal as he delves into his Asian identity spanning time as well as culture.

Wearing his Indian on his sleeve, the album opens with “Rising Up,” a song that is more Indian folk than electronic, complete with great tabla rhythms. Of course there is more to Asian music than can be found on the subcontinent and “Kezang La” seems to take us into the heart of Japan (or is that China) complete with Japanese (or Chinese) vocals and flute. The rhythms are more electronic and the repeating vocal phrases are perfect building blocks on which to develop the track. “Daybreak” completes the transformation from folk to instrumental electronic. More layered than the preceding tracks, there is a lot going on but far from being too crowded the elements are expertly produced, combining drum machine rhythms, keyboard, and strings to create a whole that is stronger than any one element (and it’s very pretty, too).

The next several tracks continue the electronics and excellent production but are slower, heavier, and mostly instrumental. In one song layers of street noise and voices in the background ground the piece while in the next female Indian vocals and flute rise above the heavier instrumentation like an angel. The next song, “Innocence” is presented as an instrumentally backed spoken word piece with a lot of word play and rhyming. Still largely electronic, more organic Asian instruments make their reappearance with a little soul thrown in for spice.

“A Call to Prayer” is the longest and least developed track on the album but remains true to it’s name with Arabic sounding vocals in the background. “Turkish Spice” continues the Arabic theme and is the most “dance” oriented song, unfortunately relying on some of the more overused sounds of the genre. Tabla’s are back in the house for “Mamaji,” which features “an intimate conversation between the artist and his grandmother.” In it she says “the goal is just the same, that you have to reach the supreme.” It’s a goal that is brought a little closer with “Water,” the beautiful closing track, which competes with “Daybreak” as the prettiest and most layered song on the album.

Tarun describes 22 Degrees of Beatitude as “his most personal work to date.” Without knowing him I can’t verify that, but in blending Asian culture with well-produced electronica and intimate sounds it is clear by the end that he has made use of all of his resources. “Beatitude” is latin for “blessing” and the sense of sacredness within the songs is impossible to miss. With much gratitude for his Beatitude perhaps the biggest blessing is that he made the album at all.