Trance Hypothesis

Trance Hypothesis

Jazz has become a sort of musical lingua franca in recent years. The innate skill and advanced training many musicians now receive is part of the reason; the other is that many of today’s musicians (or their parents) come from outside the U.S. Such is the case with half-Pakistani and half-Chilean guitarist Fareed Haque, who grew up in the States and is now based in Chicago. With the exception of the African-influenced “Saba” and the western classical “Gnossienne 1,” Haque here combines modern jazz grooves, electric drums, and keyboards with traditional South Asian folk forms into a very hip fusion. Sometimes you also have the greasy soul jazz of “Down to the Root” and the boogaloo-inspired “Chitlins ‘n’ Chutney.” At other times, rhythmic Indian singing and traditional sounds on tracks like “Poonjob in the Punjab,” “Hymn of the Ancients,” and the title track are integrated. (The electronic drums and tabla work particularly well together.) John McLaughlin may have blazed this trail decades ago, but here Haque certainly adds a new voice to this conversation.

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