Desert Phase
This album is based upon their personal experiences and observations of joy within hardship while travelling three deserts - Arizona’s Sonoran, Rhajistan’s Thar and the Northern Sahara. The album includes field recordings of Sonoran desert winds, Moroccan bazaars and the desert dwelling musicians of Jaisalmer. This has produced an interesting collection of both eastern and country electronica hybrids. You can picture in your minds eye the lone horseman entering the town amongst the tumbleweed with the atmospheric guitar intro of “The Stranger Rolls In”. This again is reflected with the atmospheric almost bluegrass “Arizona Morning Cocoon” while the guitar is also employed in other tracks like “Dobro” along with the harmonica they have a less sombre and more upbeat feel about them. A good proportion of the album has a more eastern vibe where tracks like “Eye Of The Storm” replace the guitar with the oud and the atmospheric wind theme runs through “Desert Child”, “When Only Sand Remains” and “Dust Devil” along with chimes, ethnic drumming, tribal chants and flutes in variable tempos. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this album. Although world music covers a broad spectrum the contrast of music styles held my interest and I genuinely felt the connection of the theme and titles in the music.