Karsh Kale/ Dust

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR 

Karsh Kale/ Dust

Genre: Indie/ Asian massive 

Label: Six Degrees Records/ Mighty Junn

Rating: ****

Tablas gallop around like horses, birds chirp in the distance, alaaps saunter in and out, synthesisers transport you to another space, sitars and bansuris dazzle with melody, and words mention mazes, battles and dust.

With its blend of traditional and modern, acoustic and electric, Indian and western, Karsh Kale's music has always been adventurous and eclectic. His latest album Dust is no exception, as it takes you on a sonic journey that defies boundaries and challenges norms.

Though the Indian-American tabla player, percussionist, composer, producer and singer released a few EPs in the interim, Dust is his first full-length album In a decade, after the 2016 collection Up. Significantly, he does most lead vocals himself, singing in English to provide a global appeal, besides playing piano, synths and bass, besides his regular tabla and drums.

He's got a great list of collaborators too, with sitar player Purbayan Chatterjee, flautist Ajay Prasanna, dulcimer genius Max ZT and guitarist Warren Mendonsa joined by various background vocalists like Ankur Tewari, Benny Dayal and Komorebi. For the cutting edge sound, Gaurav Raina of Midival Punditz, Salim Merchant and Neel Adhikari assist Karsh on production.

One of the 11-track album's highlights is 'Tabla Beat Scientist', a dedication to Ustad Zakir Hussain. It has some sizzling sitarwork by Purbayan, with Salim Merchant arranging strings played by the Budapest Symphonic Orchestra. It uses a sample of Zakir's voice, saying "A teacher never teaches, a student learns, a student must inspire a teacher to teach, or else there's no point in it."

The album's opening number 'Night Turns' sets the mood, with Warren Mendonsa's electric guitar, Karsh's distorted tablas and Jack Shannon's lyrics providing an ambient rock vibe. The next two tracks have subtle work by flautist Ajay Prasanna. Vocalist Pavithra Chari chips in on 'Stranger Than Darkness', and dulcimer player Max ZT appears on the melodic beauty 'The Maze'.

The title track is a treat with Karsh singing, "As the ocean crashes down and the waters begin to retreat, and I will surrender and I'll be complete, as I become thr dust. the dustin' of your feet." Again, Purbayan's sitar complements the main melody beautifully..

The flute-driven 'The Nest' is beautified by bird sounds. 'In An Hour' features guitarist Neel Adhikari and sarangi player Sabir Khan, with Karsh singing, "Lose the feel, but don't lose the flow, lose yourself beyond the door, try to lose yourself a little more, so you know you're gone for sure."

The next two tracks tend to get a bit extra-experimental, coming after the melodic brilliance of the previous numbers. 'Guidance' has an electric fretless guitar by sarod player Alam Khan, with Damini Bhatia on vocals, and Karsh's solo outing 'Time Stretcher' uses unconventional synths and samples. 

The album concludes with the intense 'Lift Me Up' and the clubby 'Heroes', with Komorebi and Ben Parag on vocals on the latter. The last song has the trademark Asian underground and Asian massive sound that Karsh has been part of, perfect for the dance floor yet having its traditional Indian flavours.

Before actually recording the songs, Karsh spent two months creating 28 paintings which helped him to write the compositions on piano. The inspiration surely worked, as the end result is filled with imagination and artistry. Coming 25 years after his first full-length record Realize, this is a milestone.