Genre: Experimental / Multi-Ethnic

Disk 1
01 Forgotten Fish Memory Orchestra - Iron Shoes
02 'Indian Soundscapes'
03 Amps For Christ - Happy New Year, Sibanjar
04 Hop Frog's Drum Jester Devotional - Battlebath
05 Pyramids On Mars - Yarari
06 'Indian Soundscapes'
07 Volcanosis - Galapagosbeats
08 Bill Horist - Nukero Oto
09 C.O.T.A. - Marching Past Babylon
10 Neung Phak - Sadchatri 06
11 Refigerator Mothers - Salic Trip
12 Venerable Showers Of Beauty Gamelan with The Lewis And Clark Gamelan Players - Kai Gantur Sari
13 'Indian Soundscapes'
14 Muslimgauze - Zahal End
15 Ramona Ponzini + Z'ev - 7M24S

Disk 2
01 Soriah - Tehuan
02 Auto Da Fe - RoRoKoda
03 Kamilsky - Krumpacizasrany
04 'Burmese Puppet Show'
05 Metal Rouge - Calling Winter, Apologizing To The Earth
06 baba larriji - Yezdan Hu 7
07 Nequaquam Vacuum - The Night's Young Mandarin
08 'Indian Soundscapes'
09 Aditi Tahiti - Srimad
10 Sikhara - Fatwa
11 F-Space - Shining Light
12 Sardonik Grin - atYEWmorEeYE
13 Moe! Staiano - Chungking
14 'Indian Soundscapes'
15 'Burmese Puppet Show'
16 Catastrophic Mermaids On Parade - Higher Energy Tranference Of Lava Coated Monks On The Moon

One would think that the efforts of Richard and Alan Bishop (the core members of Sun City Girls), with their field recordings of bizarre and exotic music documented on the Sublime Frequencies label, would have something to do with this "compilation of Eastern influenced experimental music." No dice, but the effect of their documents of radio transmissions and street recordings of pop, folk and classical musics from the Middle East, South Asia and Southeastern Asia have left an indelible mark on some of the Western underground artists represented here. Instead it's the Hop-Frog Kollectiv of Southern California that spearheaded this project and are responsible for a few of the contributions throughout these two disks. Asa compilation of good music it succeeds, but as a concept record it leaves something to be desired. The Eastern influence is apparent here and there but is often more derivative than it is genuine, which is a pretty mild criticism. Please take note that the "Indian Soundscape" pieces are field recordings made by Charles Downe in India during 2004 and the "Burmese Puppet Show" tracks are from recordings made in Myanmar by Jerry Lloyd in 2007. Having acknowledged these facts, I shall refrain from any further comments on these tracks that are peppered throughout the compilation, as they surely speak for themselves and are strategically placed in good taste.

"Iron Shoes" opens with a psychedelic flavor credited to one M. Miller who bows, plucks and plinks sufficiently over a steady percussive base. How much is sampled and how much is actual playing becomes obscured as the piece plays on, but some signifiers surface in the form of sloppy triplets about halfway through. Either this is a feat of extensive instrumental multi-tracking or digital trickery. The end result is good enough regardless, if not a bit haphazard. Amps For Christ have come a long way since their post-hardcore homemade noise days. Barnes can really rock the sitar and their track is not so Eastern as it is just a damn good modal jam that's a pleasure to listen to. Beats the hell out of some of the other post-M.I.T.B. stuff that's floating around these days (like Bastard Noise) and could surely give the likes of Sunburned Hand Of The Man a run for their money. "Battlebath" takes one of my favorite string instruments, the saz, and does very little with it but add some looped rhythms and processing. Mr. Morelock shpuld take a listen to the Turkish saz master Arif Tag and learn a lesson or three.

Pyramids On Mars is a rock quartet that share more with Hawkwind on this 2001 live track than they do with any traditional Eastern music. So maybe the vocalist doubles on the oud, but that's about it. Good trippy rock at any rate. After a generous interlude of Indian street recordings, the duo of Denise Owens and Jeremy Morelock offer up another track from the Hop-Frog bunch. While the percussive motif is decidedly of a Middle-Eastern tradition, the guitar playing is merely a Western-tuning rendition of an "eastern-esque" mode that doesn't do a whole lot for me. Seattle guitar genius Bill Horist follows with his usual arrray of unique preparations and tasteful processing. By bowing his axe and implementing a slide, he's able to achieve the microtonal nuances that give his piece a more genuine quality and truly Eastern feel than anything that's come before and is a damn fine piece of music. Dare I say, perhaps the best experimental guitarist this side of Fred Frith. This segues right into the track by C.O.T.A. (aka Jon Auchterlonie) that makes little use out of Korean and Iranian instruments to much more than a sort of generic industrial music. Neung Phak (Mono Pause) enlists a sextet of musicians for something that could possibly be one of Can's out-takes from their "Ethnological Forgery Series." That's not an insult by any means, but is strangely Western in its intonation especially considering that the recording was made in Thailand.

"Salic Trip" come from the Hop-Frog crew in the form of a trio that present their own brand of ethnological forgery. The Damo Suzuki-esque vocals and Irmin Schmidt style of keyboard playing are a bit ironic, but ultimately lackluster despite some keen synth-work. "Kai Gantur Sari" is some genuine Gamelan orchestra work; forgive me if I can't discern whether it's in Slendro or Pelog tuning by merely listening, but I can offer that it's in the more plodding style of the Javanese tradition than the hyper-complexity of the Balinese variety. OK so it's probably Pelog, like you're testing me right? Beautiful piece of music, the kind I never tire of. I suppose a compilation with this theme would be incomplete without a track from the late Muslimgauze. Unfortunately this 1994 piece is confined to an electronic rendition of a traditional Persian rhythmic motif and little else, save for some glitchy disruptions. Rather pedestrian considering what this guy was capable of. The first disk ends with your favorite Kabbalistic percussionist in collaboration with Ramona Ponzini. The title refers to the length of the track and is not nearly as cathartic as I expected. Z'ev's activity seems to be more involved with the recording and mixing process than the usual percussive gymnastics. Ponzini's vocals are seductive if not outright intoxicating and the percussion takes on an electronically metallic sheen. Excellent music despite any overt reference to anything "post-asiatic" except for some spiritual constructs perhaps?

If anyone embodies the them of this collection it's Soriah. Having experienced his music live some five years ago, the Hoomi-style Mongolian overtone singing and harmonium drones made the structure of the space breathe forcefully to the point of threatening an explosion. The resonance of such sonics were quite an intense experience to say the least. Here he practices Nahuatl chants with a frame drum pulse alongside singing bowl and cymbal washes. The power of the voice is a force to be reckoned with, regardless of the accompaniment...heavy stuff folks. Auto Da Fe contribute a tight number of Persian origin. Tara Tavi's outstanding vocals and the drumming efforts of Erin Barnes and Leandra Gil really make this one shine with authenticity, while Matin Kvisvic's string work keeps it in the proper mode. Kamlisky's track is of the "fourth world" variety combining synthesizer, djembe, sitar and saxophone. It's a twenty-first century "music of another present era." That's neither negative crticism nor a comparison to Oregon's classic first LP, but a generous assessment of a rather uninspired piece. "Calling Winter, Apologizing To The Earth" is a dense work of metallic reverberated drones that fall into place nicely here, but fail to leave much of a lasting impression. A little less processing and more pure playing might have helped, but it makes for an excellent transition to baba larriji's track.

"Yezadan Hu 7" sounds like a pop-version of Muslimgauze with programmed beats, obligatory chants and Middle-Eastern motifs. A little too complex for a Madonna backing track, but not much more interesting. The next piece from the trio of Armstrong, McAlister and Mickens is a choice bit of percussion improvisation. It's not anchored to any specific tradition per se, but captures a certain spirit that Eastern music enthusiasts can relate to. I'm especially reminded of the aesthetic of Lou Harrison's percussion writing before his obsession with Gamelan. Aditi Tahiti is a recent transplant from the Pacific northwest to the NYC area. Her vocal and harmonium track here is beautiful, especially the layering of the voices and the microtonal nuances therein. On par with some Joan LaBarbara's best work, this is an extraordinary piece. Sikhara do what Sikhara do. This track finds them drumming and chanting live on WFMU in top form. A gorgeous and powerful piece, but I can't help but wonder who is the target of the "Fatwa." San Francisco mainstay Scot Jenerik leads his group F-Space for a tribal nine-minute workout that recalls some vintage Savage Republic more than it does any specific Asian music, except for maybe the principal melodic figure. I suppose it's no coincidence that Ethan Port plays on this track, eh? At any rate it's a good enough piece despite some creepy vocals and rock bombast that both evoke mid-period Swans.

Llewyn Maire (aka Sardonik Grin) offers up some skewed laptop work that has the catchy charm of someone like Blevin Blectum on a good night. That is to say that periodic rhythmic elements are balanced with abstract sounds in a most stellar union. Nothing could really properly lead into this Moe! Staiano piece though. Incredible live recording of polyrhythmic thrash using a multitude of percussion instruments and an ebowed guitar that could possibly put some of that solo Flying Luttenbachers stuff to shame. Now that Weasel Walter is living in the Bay Area, imagine what these two could acheive together. The last of the field recording interludes provide the set-up for the final Hop-Frog contributuion credited to Catastrophic Mermaids On Parade and performed by Hermit The Flog. This is an excellent piece of electronic music based on overtone singing that wraps up the collection quite nicely with some chaotic processing. Quite nicely indeed.

Maybe I don't get the Eastern connection with some of these pieces but everyone's heart seems to be in the right place. As a composer and and an improvisor I've integrated elements of Eastern music into the fabric of my musical language, both consciously and otherwise. I don't suspect that's really too obvious either. I really like this collection in it's handsome gatefold double-LP style jacket and certainly "don't take offense at the fumbling of (our) clumsy fingers at the fragile crytalline perfections of the Orient." Say what? I just prefer to consider it a damn good compilation. The light in me bows to the light in you. Namaste y'all.