Track Listing

1. Ghazal
2. Nahan "The Hidden"
3. Allahi Allah
4. The Hunt
5. Dunya
6. In the Shadow of Life
7. Golzar
8. Dilruba
9. Minara

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14331 in Music
• Released on: 2005-04-19
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .17 pounds

Album Description
Niyaz is an acoustic electronic project that brings together three prominent musical figures to form an exciting new fusion of traditional Persian music and modern electronics..

Vocalist and composer Azam Ali, one of the founding members of the acclaimed group Vas was born in Iran, raised in India and moved to The United State as a teenager.

Multi instrumentalist and composer Ramin (Loga) Torkian of Axiom of Choice was also born in Iran and moved to the United states as a teenager. His extensive travels combined with his in-depth understanding of Persian music and Indian culture and spirituality have enabled him to cultivate a sound that is extremely authentic, yet can lend itself to the modern framework within which the music is created.

Twice Grammy nominee producer/ remixer Carmen Rizzo is one of the most in demand producer- programmers on the electronic dance scene today. He has worked with artists ranging from Ryuichi Sakamoto, Khaled, Seal, Paul Oakenfold & Cirque Du Soleil bringing his unique approach to beats and electronic textures.

These three veteran masters have all experienced success on their own and have found a new common ground in Niyaz where the mystical poetry of Urdu and Persian Sufi poets of the 14th and 15th century forms the lyrical framework for a fresh new musical adventure.

Amazon.com
Azam Ali, who sings with the duo Vas, has one of the most seductive and effortlessly disciplined altos active on the world stage. Now based in Los Angeles, she is a child of three cultures, Indian, Persian (Iranian) and American, so her music encompasses a triple conundrum. She is joined by Loga Ramin Torkian of Axiom of Choice, who has mastered an impressive array of traditional instruments from Europe, Turkey and his native Iran, and Grammy-winning producer/remixer Carmen Rizzo. The project was inspired by Sufi devotional poems written in Farsi (Persian) or Urdu, which is spoken in much of India and Pakistan. Although interpreted through ultra-modern beats and ambient drones, the traditional material reigns supreme, bringing a sense of adventurous continuity to grooves that, in less inspired hands, could well have emerged slap-dash and prosaic. Unlike most tracks intended for nightclubs, these are as compulsively listenable as they are danceable. --Christina Roden

Customer Reviews

Excellent electronic + world music fusion
This album easily tops my list for the best releases so far this year. I haven't been able to get it out of my CD player since I bought it.

So what does it sound like? Take a bit of Vas, mix it up with some electronic beats and a few synths here and there and you've got Niyaz. If you always liked some of the more upbeat Vas songs, but wished there was a little electronics sometimes - Niyaz is for you. If you aren't familiar with Vas, this should appeal to fans of Dead Can Dance or Loreena McKennitt. (And if you aren't a fan of Vas, go run out and get their most recent release!) I'm not familiar with Axiom of Choice, but based on this release, I'm going to definitely have to check them out.

I'm a big Azam Ali fan and her vocals are in top form here. She has an uncanny ability to express a wide range of emotions with her singing. In terms of the music, most of it is pretty upbeat - with electro rhythms mixed with more traditional sounding world percussion. You could imagine the result sounding cheesy, but they pull it off elegantly and the result is an amazing album full of depth and intensity. Highly recommended.

Love of Beauty, Love of the Divine
This CD is absolutely one of my favorites. It is a collaboration between Loga Ramin Torkian (Axiom of Choice) and Azam Ali (Vas) which transcends generes. Elements of Qawwali and Persian classical music fuse seemlessly with New Age, electronica and Ali's hauntingly beautiful vocals. Drawn from a rich history of Farsi and Urdu poetry, this music is love for the divine in it's purest form. Like Sufism, it transcends language and religious denomination. It's pure love... dark, eerie and wonderful all at once. I LOVE this CD, and strongly recommend it for anyone who loves Middle Eastern or South Asian music, or wants to explore it.

Songs like Nahan, Allah Allahi and The Hunt stay with you long after you listen to this CD. If your a fan of Vas, Natacha Atlas, Dead Can Dance, or similar groups, you owe it to yourself to check this CD out. And if this is the fist such CD your listening to, then look for more CDs from Vas, Azam Ali and Axiom of Choice (as well as other Persian/Iranian artists out there). I promise, you won't be disappointed.

jo duniya ka maalik hai naam usi ka liya karo
This CD is a masterpiece (for lack of a better word). I'm a big fan of Azam Ali and Greg Eliss' band, "Vas." A band that perfectly exemplifies that the most important things in life go BEYOND words and that there is an ineffable Beauty in seeking for that special place WITHIN us, a place like no other in this world. Unlike her songs on "Vas," Azam Ali sings in Urdu and Farsi on "Niyaz," two of the most poetic languages in the world. When I heard the first song, "Ghazal," I was stunned and in awe... like whoa, I never heard anyone sing in Urdu like this before. It got even better when I opened the CD case and discovered that she also sings the poems of arguably the greatest spiritual poet that ever lived: Jalaluddin Rumi!

Also unlike "Vas," this album features synth work, yet it still captures that spiritual energy found in Vas. "Niyaz" just sounds more modernized. It truly is folk music for the 21st Century (as the album is self-described). The young and modern sounds mixed with ethnic and mystical instruments just demonstrate how versatile Middle-Eastern/South Asian music is, and Azam Ali's ethnic and uniquely aboriginal voice helps mentally transport the listener into the mystical realm of timeless Urdu and Farsi poetry. Her voice gives the listener freedom in traveling wherever his/her imagination takes him/her.

If you're a fan of Vas or just of music in general, then this CD is a must-have! The music is great for ESCAPE, inspiration, for exercising our minds, painting pictures in our minds, or even just relaxation or meditation (particularly the Sufi Whirling Meditation).

My favorite tracks are "Ghazal," "Allahi Allah," "The Hunt," "Dunya," "Golzar," "Dilruba," and "Minara" (a great closing track!)

Beautiful and timeless lyrics, soaring vocals, ethnic soundscapes, young and stimulating beats - relax, close your eyes, and let the music send you diving into the Ocean of your Imagination.

Asalaam Alaykoum