When it comes to music in the diaspora, there a few names that of course come to mind (Talvin Singh, Panjabi MC), but one of the most consistent and visible musicians evolving from the South Asian diaspora, and who is not universally from the UK Bhangra or the Asian Drum and Bass scene, is without a doubt, Nitin Sahwney. DJ, producer, musician, and activist extraordinaire, Sawhney whose most recent studio-album Philtre, which has to be listed amongst his best work, is now slated to score Mira Nair’s production of Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake, and is reported to be working as a producer on Indo-Canadian British transplant pop-star Raghav’s unfinished second album. In fact, Bobby and Nihal, on their October 12 radio show on the BBC offerred up a bit of a preview of the Raghav/Nitin collaborative work entitled “Seasons,” which draws heavily on the heavenly ‘Mausam’, which appears on the Philtre album. After having heard the original Mausam, the version featuring Raghav admittedly sounded a bit cheecky, but knowing that Nitin is producing some of the record makes me dizzy with anticipation. Well, maybe not dizzy, but excited for sure.
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p>Incidentally, Sawhney, who has also worked with Sting and Spanish collective Ojos de Brujo among others, seems to be in demand lately. Former Beattle Sir Paul McCartney, in an interview with Rolling Stone published earlier this month, said he initially wanted to make a record influenced by Nitin’s sound,
“I liked the idea of toying with a kind of Asian thing, a one-chord thing. There’s an artist called Nitin Sawhney who I like — he’s a British-Asian guy. It was just a vibe I was into at the time
More SM on Nitin here.
Ever since hearing Nitin Sawhney’s interview on the Bobby and Nihal show about a year ago where spoke about the collabo with Raghav, (and chose Raghav over Jay Sean in a rapid-fire type question session delivered by Bobby F), I have been fiending hear what would transpire. The new version of Mausam with Raghav didn’t place me on the wings of ecstasy and fly me to musical heaven, as is often expected when Nitin Sawhney is involved, but it was enough of a taste to indicate big things are on the horizon with this pairing.
I can’t begin to say enough about Sawhney. His music is a dose of reality and righteousness in today’s convoluted Asian music scene (I swear this is not a rant about the sad state of new music a la Asian artists!). It is easy to develop a sense of respect for Nitin Sawhney’s music without even listening to a single piece. Having read numerous interviews with him, it is easy to see this man hustles on another level of musical genius – he constantly speaks about the common mistake of separating music into different styles, and the resulting suffocation of music this separation creates. Moreover, he is able to realize the power of his primary medium and use it to speak about the world from a political standpoint. If every artist were to take on a bit of the same mindset, we would be able to appreciate music at a totally different level.
I see Nitin Sawhney on one side of the globe and Karsh Kale on the other side of the globe as Atlases that shoulder the world of music populated by Asian artists. I am very glad that we have artists such as Nitin and Karsh that we can proudly flaunt as being our ‘own’, as they break down the common stereotypes of the expected. Now only if popular culture could propagate artists such as Nitin Sawhney and Karsh Kale into the mainstream as it has done with Raghav and 2point9!
2point9 in the mainstream? We’re definitely not in agreement there Naheem, but I’m with you on everything else.
Living in the UK, sometimes your fandom of Nitin Sawhney gets tested. For ALL – and I mean ALL – TV shows featuring ANYTHING even REMOTELY Indian (lots of capitals in this sentence) features either:
Bombay – the Little Master Homelands – Nitin Sawhney (occasionally something else from his back catalogue)
Both are truly astounding pieces of music though. Anyone who hasn’t heard much Sawhney do take Sajit’s tip and check him out (I think he’s the first musician I ever saw live, outside a club).
Nevertheless, I like him for many reasons. Much of his music doesn’t float my boat, but I love his attitude. He refuses to be pigeon-holed, which is rare in ANY field of music.
I quite randomly stumbled into a live Nitin Sawhney show in London at Whitechapel Art Gallery in ’99 – it was hands down the most amazing live music I have ever heard!!
Still hoping to once again hear some live Nitin on this side of the pond…
When my mom came to visit, I had Nitin Sawhney’s “Fragile Wind” on repeat. The first time she heard it, she almost came to tears. I lowe his music, and hate that most reviewers and articles describe his music as “fusion” (c’mon, don’t be so lazy!).
His music spans so many different styles, genres, moodsÂ…and apparently, generations as well. It stirs the soul only to get your foot tapping in the next minute.
PS Naheem, well said!
Nitin Sawhney is unbelievable. His musical poetry transcends all classifications.
2point9 in the mainstream from a Canadian perspective, I should add. With the advent of Raghav on popular radio stations here, the boys and girl of 2point9 are on everyone’s lips as being the next big UK Asian thing to breakout into mainstream radio. Further evidence of 2point9 being mainstream from a Canadian perspective can be seen in the number of times each of the abovementioned artists have performed in this side of the globe. 2point9 was here a few weeks ago (what a disastrous performance that was unfortunately), and a couple of years ago at Mendhi Masti Masala. Nitin Sawhney’s performances in Canada: A big, round, yet sad ZERO. So from this end, 2point9 is definitely more mainstream than Nitin Sawhney. Hopefully that will change soon because there is definately a huge market for his music here in Canada.
It must be a totally different listening experience to be bombarded by his music in all realms of entertainment! A majority of my friends who I have attempted to introduce Nitin Sawhney’s music to, would equate staring at a floor tile for 3 hours with listening to a Nitin Sawhney song! They definatley would not be pleased to be inundated with his music as much as you all are in the UK.
It’s amazing that you got to see him perform live. Earlier this year while I was in Prague, I made the trip to Buxton where he was suppose to perform live at the Buxton Opera House as part of an International Music Festival. Unfortunately he had injured his hand earlier in the week and the concert was cancelled (albeit cancelled on the day before the concert when I had already purchased my plane ticket!). But, I was able to see him DJ an amazing set in Birmingham at the Custard Factory with a cast on his hand!
Haven’t heard “the littele master” by Bombay, but i’ll definately attempt to check it out.
Naheem, sorry, I didn’t mean to be cryptic. The Little Master = A R Rahman. And I KNOW you’ve heard the Bonbay Theme (its correct name) because everyone in the world has. EVERYONE!
Raghav’s not 2point9. Jay Sean is – and even then he’s not daft enough to let the monkeys at ‘Do point no’ produce all his singles.
Perhaps we’re defining mainstream differently. For the UK: Nitin Sawhney is mainstream. Raghav is mainstream, in that he’s had 4 top ten hits. Punjabi MC, PHS, Rishi Rich, Jay Sean, Juggy D – these are NOT mainstream. They are popular in the Asian music scene and not outside. Gay Porn has enjoyed two Top 40 hits, but he remains someone entirely buoyed by Asian buyers. Whereas Raghav has smartly done collabos with other artists which has given him a different fanbase.
At the RISE festival in London, all the Asian performers were relegated to the ‘Mela’ stage. But Raghav was headlining the Main stage along with Lemar. I looked at the crowd singing all the words to Raghav’s songs and realised they were an incredibly mixed bunch.
Bonbay = Bombay. Sorry!
I WANT to like Nitin on principle, I really do. He’s smart in interviews, was one of the original “Goodness Gracious Me” contributors, actually plays instruments (unlike most producers), and travels globally to find new sounds. But damn, seeing him at the Innocence festival this summer, all I could think was — he’s like an Asian Sting, all “adult contemporary” blandness these days. I lurve “Bengali Song” and a couple others, but everything else is just unmemorable easy-listening, if you ask me. Which you didn’t. 🙂
Nitin is in a league by himself. I can’t think of any musician/producer who combines styles and sounds so seamlessly and effortlessly in such an accessible yet original way. He transcends the label of ‘Asian’ or ‘British Asian’ or ‘Indian’ — this guy is universal and timeless and his music is a testament to his talent and vision.
More quick thoughts on him here on my blog posting from a few weeks ago.
HAHA! Bong Breaker, you have some much lowe for the crew over at 2point9! OY! Get that hate out of your heart mate, not good for the blood pressure! (yes my pathetic attempt at sounding British…it will stop now)
You are right, we are probably looking at mainstream differently. I assumed PHS and 2point9 were on the same mainstream level as Raghav, especially since the PHS and Rishi Rich have their own radio shows. However, I could be horribly mistaken as to the reach of those radio shows! I thought Juggy D broke some record with sales at HMV, or something to that effect? You have to enjoy some of their tracks?! “Akheer”? Everyone likes “Akheer”!
I am well aware that 2point9 and Raghav are two separate entities. But, they do fall into the same ‘pop-r&b’ category. And following a simlar entry-strategy that Raghav’s Marketing people used for the North American market, I would assume that 2point9 would attempt to follow his steps into the North American mainstream. Especially since they already have some exposure through Rishi’s collabo with Mrs. Spears.
Raghav only had “So Confused” and “Angel Eyes” as his releases on radio here. It’s a shame he didn’t release “Sooner or Later”, his collaboration with Canadian artist Kardinal. Releasing that particular track would have definately increased RaghavÂ’s fan-base to dizzying heights. However, as you pointed out with the RISE festival, Raghav’s status in the music scene definitely seems to be on another level.
Back to Nitin Sawhney – The subjectivity behind musical taste makes it very hard to universally claim one artist’s prominence over another. However, in the case of Nitin Sawhney we are allowed to break the rule.
Hate is great. I nurture the hate!
Again I would disagree that Raghav and 2.9 belong to same category. ‘Pop-r&b’ is definitely Raghav. But 2.9 is nothing but Asian-pop. Without doubt they are highly successful in the Asian market, but when I hear mainstream, I assume you mean the wider market…i.e. non-Asians.
The RRP show on KISS 100 is dire. Truly dire. It was started up after Bobby & Nihal’s moved to a primetime slot and KISS (generally a station I quite like) decided they needed an equivalent. Jay Sean was hot then, so RRP got the gig. Within weeks it’d been moved to a sleepier time. PHS’ show is on a digital radio station – one received by a minority of people in the UK. It’s also pretty sucky. The only Asian show that I listen to at all is B&N’s and even then not all that often. It stands out as they play a range of music, not just rudeboy desi hip hop and bhangra on loop.
Yeah, I remember Rishi’s collaboration with Mrs Federline – they made such a big deal out of it. But in the end all it turned out to be was the usual Rishi Rich Re-hash with his one flute sample and his one drum loop (nicked off Sagloops no doubt)! I’m glad I haven’t heard from that camp in a while.
I’m quite willing to break some Juggy D record, I don’t know if he’s broken any though! Nah I don’t mind Juggy or even Jay. Just Rishi Rich, eejit. And not particularly polite either.
Midwestern Eastender (I always seem to be able to recognise your names…assuming you are you), I take the point and the comparison is quite funny. But he’s not Sting…he’s more inventive I think. Sure, sometimes bland (as I hinted at) but never predictable. You KNOW I like Bengali Song!
Nitin is definitely illin. I have SIX of his albums. If your mind cannot expand to love R&B, flamenco, bhangra, d&b and Bollywood (I’m sure I left out a few categories), Nitin will annoy you. He mixes it all up. I know folks who adore his Bollywood-type remixes but can’t stand his “urban contemporary” stylings.
To me it’s (literally) ALL GOOD. Keep it coming son. You’re a genius.
I agree that perhaps PHS and some of the doh point nau crew are not completely mainstream, but Panjabi MC–he broke the U.S., something neither Raghav or any other South Asian artist has been able to do. If you are going by UK chart success, then I think you have to include Jay Sean and Juggy, not only did their collabo Dance with You chart at 12 (not bad for a song that had a Punjabi hook), but both Jay Sean’s “Stolen” and “Eyes on You” entered the charts in the top 10. If I recall correctly, Time Magazine highlighted Jay in their feature on desis in the U.S., and didn’t Jay get signed to a million pound record deal with by a mainstream (Relentless) record label?
Regardless, I don’t think it needs to be Jay Sean vs. Raghav or Rishi Rich vs. PHS. I think there is room for all of them. I should add though, the only artist of all the ones mentioned above that the average American MAY have heard of is Panjabi MC.
Relentless did sign Jay – along with Joss Stone – and it was clear where they were going to put their effort in. I never heard it was a million pound deal and I work with some friends who were also signed to Relentless. And they don’t speak highly of it.
You’re right, of course it doesn’t have to be a competition – I was just differentiating between Raghav and the others mentioned. Sure PMC broke the US…but he’s a one-hit-wonder if you’re using that sort of success as a marker. Yes that record was huge, but then so was The Ketchup Song (at least in Europe)…I don’t think that that Spanish bubblegum pop group could be considered mainstream! The rest of PMC’s discography is distinctly inaccessible to someone uninitiated in ‘Desi Beats’.
Again, UK chart success alone isn’t a measure (and granted, I was the one who used that first) as Bally Sagoo charted with a song entirely in Hindi (Dil Cheez) yonks ago. That was even more remarkable really, as downloading didn’t exist and singles sold bucketloads. Now the UK singles chart is a joke – 15,000 gets you top 3 on some weeks. I have no doubt that Jay Sean’s chart positions are well over 90% Asian buyers, but Raghav’s aren’t (even he has Hindi lyrics in his songs). Coupled with Raghav’s appearances at all sorts of events and shows – he would be the most recognisable brown face in pop to a Brit.
Surely Raghav is big in Canada though?
Hey guys….
I wanna download some Nitin Swanhey and figure out what the hype is all about…Can soem of you list some of his songs I should download…..Thanks
Of course it’s me, Bongo. I’m not TOO mysterious. How many midwesterners do YOU know living in the east end? 😉
Anyway, as of today’s arrival of a package from amazon, I am voting Shri the most interesting thing in Brit Asian music right now. I was never totally into Badmarsh & Shri (too much ragga…you guys have got a serious love affair with Jamaicans, I swear) although a few tracks were Asian Underground classics, but dude, Shri on his own is quite interesting. I saw him live last Oct, watched him play fretless bass, upright bass, flute, tablas, and have a different vocalist walk on for each track — amazing! Some of his stuff ventures into easy-listening as well, but there’s still some funky shit. I’m all about the fretless bass, yo.
He is very big in Canada amongst the Asian fans, and due to his songs being rotated on the radio I am sure he’s picked up a few non-Asian Canadian fans along the way. In addition, being born in a Canada adds to his popularity here.
Hey Raal, hopefully a listen to some of these tracks will convince you to invest some money in any one of Nitin SawhneyÂ’s breath-taking albums.
“Breathing Light”: This is my favourite Nitin Sawhney track, hands down. It’s a great composition combining a variety of instruments with no vocals. It is one of those tracks that will put you at ease regardless of what mood you are in.
“O Mistress Mine”: If I’m not mistaken, the lyrics are taken from a Shakespeare writing. It definitely speaks to Nitin Sawhney’s constant trek towards pushing the boundaries when it comes to providing the listener with a different lens through which to view music as a whole. At first the singer’s voice does not seem to fit. But as the song progresses, the singer’s voice seems to taken on a personality of it’s own as it performs a beautiful dance with the violins.
“Footprints”: A flamenco-heavy tune, which again displays Nitin Sawhney’s incomparable versatility. If IÂ’m not mistaken the track is a collabo with Ojos de Brujo, or the lead singer from Ojos de Brujo. I have no idea what she is saying, but the fast-paced flamenco guitar strumming that accompanies her enchanting voice combines to speak the sweet language of music that we all can understand. A must listen for flamenco music lovers.
“Falling Angels”: A very somber song with haunting vocals accompanied by a flawless orchestra performance (although I am not a classical music critic myself, so claiming something to be ‘flawless’ really has no merit!). This song is a perfect example of the different types of musical journeys you can expect to be taken on when you listen to Nitin Sawhney’s music.
“Serpents”: Heavily influenced classical Indian track with the Indian flute and vocals – Guaranteed to induce head-bobbing, foot-tapping, and the rest of it.
I could go on all day, but IÂ’ll stop right there! IÂ’m sure other readers can provide you with their thoughts on other Nitin Sawhney tracks you should listen to.
I’ve found Karsh Kale’s music to almost be an extension of Nitin Sawhney’s music, into a more classical realm. Although Karsh’s music is less internationally influenced, it’s the same type of musical journey experienced when listening to Nitin Sawhney. If you are not familiar with Karsh Kale’s music I would suggest tracks such as “Epic”, “Sajaana”, and “Distance” to help give you an overall impression of his music.
So Shri’s solo stuff worth checking out? I haven’t bought much music for a while – but oddly enough the last shipment I got from Amazon including some Badmarsh & Shri. I don’t know if you’ve ever got bored by me talking about how much I like B&S, but I think most of my friends know I’m a fan. I don’t think there was too much ragga! But yeah – I’m not that fond of that either. I never got a lot of the fuss about Signs. But I’ve used a lot of their music in various films, mostly due to having a good relationship with Palm Pictures and Outcaste.
I don’t know what the hell you’re on about with the upright and fretless bass business woman. Is it all about glissando or something? What other difference does it make? I know that in carnartic music the violas and violins are de-fretted for smooth glissandos, is it the same concept? Or is it actually a different sound? I know jack about bass geeeetars.
From what I’ve seen of Nitin in various interviews over the years, he also comes across as a really nice guy — very down-to-earth. Also insanely talented, of course 😉 I love his flamenco guitar-playing in particular.
BongBreaker — Glad I had the chance to catch you here. Mate you’ve got to get in touch with Sunny from Pickled Politics asap and get him to pull the plug on THAT thread (you know the one I’m talking about) — it’s been hijacked by a bunch of psychopaths and is now completely out of control. If Sunny doesn’t sort this out there’s a risk of PP being inadvertantly labelled as some kind of “hate site”.
I dunno, fretless electric bass just sounds SO much more cool than a regular bass. It’s a visceral thing. I only feel more strongly about doudouks. They’re called “the saddest instrument in the world.” I ain’t a rock musician (I played piano and oboe in school. Nerd!) but there’s just something about the bendiness of the sound that makes it seriously funky, I suppose. When I meet you for the first time next weekend (one day we’ll have to have an official London Sepia Mutiny gathering and send rude photos stateside, innit? Or contrarily, ANNA, come visit me!!!!), I’ll bring you a stack of CDs as thanks for helping me. (is burning CDs somehow more ethical than downloading?)
To keep this on-topic, I’ve also recently gotten a CD from the Amrikan Kundalini Shock Attack (I actually found them just by typing in “indotrash” after a conversation with Shiva Soundsystem one night), which has been amusing me all week. Imagine Depeche Mode singing in Hindi and you’d be in the ballpark of their old-school techno-disco style. 🙂
Jai thanks for keeping an eye out – the chaps from Harry’s Place have also been trying to help out. But Sunny is off being important in Paris and I don’t have power of closingness/bannage so I’m impotent…so to speak! They just don’t give up, it’s gone absolutely crazy. I’m not even reading the posts anymore – I tried in vain to sort things but to no avail.
MWEE – I was introduced to the duduk through Gladiator’s soundtrack, I have to confess. But I too immediately loved the sound. I’m a music fan, I’m a mediocre musician, but I think one area where I’m pretty good is having a very good ear. I’ve investigated instruments from all over the world – like trying new foods, I love expanding my musical palate. Listening to new music is trying foreign cuisine, but checking out the instruments is more like experimenting with new ingredients.
I second and third the call for ANNA to come to London!
jay sean rocks!!!!!!!!
I saw Nitin years ago at a Camden Jazz Cafe gig: he came across as very comfortable with his playing, mixing it around, not needing to take the limelight.
He’s very confident in where he’s taking his music and that makes him very different to most musicians.
Can’t see why he’s being mentioned in the same breath as Raghav though, who is pretty nondescript and quite mediocre. It would make more sense for Nitin to collaborate with artists like Shri and Niraj Chag. Check out http://www.nirajchag.com
A new track by Raghav, first aired on 21st May 2007 exclusively on British radio. Raghav pays tribute to Quincy Jones himself. Raghav’s much anticipated album is due out before the end of 2007.
Raghav – Quincy Jones http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS8b5Zf-Prc
Its got such as spanish theme going to it, luving it !!!
i’m lucky enough to have heard nitin sawhney live a number of times and am glad to see so many who agree with me in appreciating his musical genius. the ability to speak to so many so clearly through music is a talent very few are blessed with. the latest live performance i was witness to was the BBC Prom at the Royal Albert Hall. Wonderful!! It was a truly inspiring evening that showed his versatility – classical computer game scores mingled with intimate vocals alongside wonderful semi-classical indian compositions. Sawhney is one of Britain’s top artists and his real worth, that may be recognised in yeas to come, is that, through his music and in helping create Goodness Gracious Me, he has put British Indian culture and achievemnts on the mainstream British cultural map more than any single person. Maybe that’s what his Prophesy foretold.