Junun

What happens when you put Jonny Greenwood Radiohead’s guitarist,Shye Ben Tzur,an Israeli-American musician & a brass band from Rajasthan of India.You get an interesting mixtape. This is no ordinary brass band, but one that has a strong Qawali (Sufi music) core.Junun means passion and that is the title of the album.A passion for music is the glue that drew this unlikely group to create this album.
This is an unusual album. Play any track.
1.Fast & rhythmic track – a duet between the drum & horn section with vocals in Qawali style.
2.Roked means dance. A spirited invocation to God in Hebrew. Unusual track.
3.Opens with traditional Indian sounds like a bhajan or a qawali & that is what this is – a mix Hindi & Hebrew words and sounds. Very unusual. It works.
4.A poem by Meera Bai sung in Punjabi.Lots of fervor.
5.A traditional sufi song set to old & new music style. Flute combined with electronica sounds & traditional vocals.
6.Eloha – an invocation to God. Has that mesmerizing quality that hymns bhajans have. Builds into a beautiful crescendo.
8. Julus means procession. A robust track with a mesmerizing rhythm & vocals.
9. Allah Elohim -sounds like a Sufi poem. Mellow vocals mixed with sounds of a typical Indian brass band. Vocals a mix of Hindi/Hebrew
10.Ahuvi is a Hebrew (I think) poem by Shye Ben Tzur, one of the producers of the record. A spiritual track – slow & peaceful.
11. Azov – Hebrew lyrics chanting with an Indian music bed – the flute works beautifully.
12.Junun Brass – spotlight on the magic & music of Rajasthani brass band. Listen for their signature Qawali sound.
13.A short, eerie kind of track.
14. A nice riff on the Qawali style with Hebrew lyrics – the horns add an interesting element. This is perhaps the most typical Qawali track of the album.

Kamla March 2016