Rising From The East

On Rising From the East, the New Delhi-born Bally Sagoo continues (and polishes up) his combination of house music with the traditional sounds of the Asian subcontinent and the Mid-East; the fact that elements of the record were recorded in Saudi Arabia, France, India, and Pakistan demonstrates some of this breadth. The appeal of Sagoo's work comes in the form of a high degree of compositional attention -- rather than simply dropping house beats under the voices of playback singers in the danceable Indian manner some other DJs have adopted, Sagoo paces his tracks carefully, incorporating both elements in a tasteful style that never really seems gimmicky. Of course, Sagoo's traditionally club-oriented house moves lack the innovation of the deconstructive breakbeats and jungle aesthetics other DJs have laid into ragga, bhangra, and traditional Indian and Pakistani music -- his aim is at a mainstream pop market, and this might leave more experimentally minded listeners a bit cold. ~ Nitsuh Abebe|