Gaurav Raina and Tapan Raj comprise the band Midival Punditz that has a well established reputation of creating crossover electronic music, using native Indian musical instruments and classical Indian artists, fusing them with the modern drum machines and synthesizers. This they have done well through the years of releasing Indian electronica in their previous two albums - Midival Punditz & Midival Times and in countless compilation and soundtrack appearances. Their 3rd studio album called Hello Hello is a reflection of the massive influence and bond to their homeland and is released by Six Degrees Records.
In the opener, Electric Universe, the broken beat and the innovative vocoded voice sample is intelligently mixed into a emotional, yet not so cheesy groove, arranged so it can suite a wide range of listeners and deliver its profound message at the same time. Mixed vocal motifs alongside deep fretless bass, squeeze out every single drop of sweetness and in a blink evolving into a Massive Attack like trip hop tune, with a slow-building intensity and melancholy beauty in Tonic (T2). As we skim through the album, the listener is taken on a fantastic journey, brightly colored with twanging acoustic and electric guitars, traditional lutes and flutes, all fused together into an imaginary land of graceful melodies and infectious rhythms (T5-7), in which Led Zeppelin's Four Sticks cover stands out as a brave move, with the help of J.Viewz and the experienced voice of Noa Lembersky waving alongside the instruments, a flawless musically deep remake (T4). Sun Mere Sanam (T8) is a soothing ethno piece, dry and massive percussions with a rising sun mantra made for “ohm-ing” in nature. As we are heading towards the end of the CD the atmosphere gets tighter heralding the inevitable end. The electronic experimentation is evident as the funk tune beats near the end. The album has a perfect ending with a melancholic tune, the acoustic version for the opener for the album. |
