Play It By Ear #001: The Great Ostads

Written by Parisa Eshrati

Handmade collage, made with jasmine and bougainvillea flowers from my mother's garden

Play It By Ear is a new series by T&E writer Parisa where she shares musical discoveries along with informational tidbits, casual musings, anecdotes, and whatever other related knowledge she can pull from her rotten quarantined brain. This first edition features: Bugandan drumming ensembles, favorite Lauryn Hill freestyles, a memoriam to the great ostad Mohammed Reza Shajarian, underrated metal releases of last year, an atmospheric drum 'n bass 101, and so much more!

If you’re a millennial, you might relate to me in that you used to come home from middle school and pour your little preteen heart out into a Xanga or Livejournal blog. It’s funny to think back on the urgency I would feel writing those posts. I would take an hour out of my day to write about what we did in social studies, who I sat next to at lunch, or how I saw my crush when I was walking to the bus (and that we had even made eye contact!!!) It’s easy to now think of all those hours in front of the computer as a waste of time, but at that age, those memories were very important to me. Plus, as a millennial, the thought of sharing my life online and connecting with random strangers was far more novel and intriguing than writing in my diary. Of course, my Xanga audience only consisted of my two e-buddies that I never even met in real life. Nevertheless, I felt like I was sharing my most heartfelt thoughts and feelings with the world, and that’s all that really mattered. 

Since then, I’ve (thankfully) lost the need to share every detail of my life on the internet. I’ve mostly stayed away from having a social media presence, but there’s been one aspect of all those blogging and forum days that I do miss -- and that’s sharing music. I mean yes, I run this blog where literally all we do is talk music, but there was something different about sharing songs on those old-school blogs and forums in a very casual way. It allowed for people to connect on a personal level. It was less about the intricacy of your writing, and more about sharing your passion of music and exchanging songs with people that you were getting to know as friends, one comment thread at a time.

With T&E, I’ve been doing interviews and things through a journalistic approach, but I wanted to also provide myself an unstructured space where I can pour out all the music I’m dying to share in an informal manner. I spend a lot of time being overly critical of my writing skills, so by having this casual space I'm hoping I can be more uninhibited. Now more than ever in our strange quarantined world, I just want to share music with you all with the same passion and stream-of-conscious style writing that I used to do with those Xanga blogs  (minus the embarrassing details about my life, lol.) Though I still strive to become a stronger professional writer, in the interim I want to freely share my favorite songs and some thoughts with you all. I may not be the best writer, but I got a lotta heart, and pretty alright music knowledge, if I say so myself. 

So, I hope this series finds a comfortable intersectionality with music sharing, music education, and personal musings. I hope you find some cool tunes to dig into along the way. And if you have responses or want to share related songs, comments are highly encouraged!

***

The artist that sparked the idea for this series is Nihiloxica, a “live project that harnesses the full force of the ancient Bugandan drumming tradition of Uganda and focuses it on the contemporary dancefloor through a dark, brooding lens of techno sensibility.” I don’t even remember how I came across their 2020 album Kaloli, but as soon as I heard it I wanted to share it with everyone I know. ​
​

Some background as to how dark underground techno merged with Bugandan drumming via their Bandcamp:

“The rhythmic force of the Nilotika Cultural Ensemble – a local Bugandan drum set and a troupe of powerful players – began to perform at a club night in Kampala’s blossoming electronic scene called Boutiq Electroniq (namesake of the first release on Nyege Nyege Tapes by Disco Vumbi) and here the first merging of live Bugandan drums with electronic sounds was made. The DJs at the embryonic Nyege club night would lay down electronic tracks, and Nilotika would jam along.

In 2017 Spooky-J, a jazz drummer and producer releasing on Blip Discs, and pq, a sound engineer and synthesist, came to Kampala ahead of Nyege Nyege Festival, presently in it’s third year, to write, rehearse, and record a set of live recordings that would form the group’s debut EP, Nihiloxica, that was released to widespread critical acclaim on Nyege Nyege Tapes. The sound showcased on that EP was just the beginning of a long, dark conversation between two cultures, and the language is only becoming more developed.”

It’s an incredibly dynamic album, by far one of my favorite releases of the year.

​

***

I’ve been playing a lot of Fall Guys lately, and the soundtrack has made me go back and listen to some of my favorite drum ‘n bass mixes. My go-to is, and has always been, this 2016 Soundcrash mix from LTJ Bukem:
​

LTJ Bukem is a legendary UK drum ‘n bass producer. He's known for his unparalleled production value and crisp, pristine sound. In the early ‘90s, he started the Good Looking Records label which pioneered the “atmospheric” subgenre of dnb. I’ve always enjoyed the atmospheric style of dnb the best, it’s dance music but also very bittersweet and nostalgic. I’d say this style is best suited for a very late night solo drive on the freeway, windows down, a late summer/early fall breeze, soaking in an afterglow of a late night out with friends, just feeling the wind and basking in the joy of carefree youth. I know that’s highly specific, but I’m sure someone out there knows what I mean by this. (Or at least I could find some comradery in this UK Rave Comments twitter account.)

If you’re interested in learning more about drum ‘n bass, I always point people to this Best of Good Looking Records compilation LTJ Bukem created on Spotify (or at least, I can’t seem to find this playlist anywhere else online.) He provides insightful commentary between each track, so it’s a great 101 to atmospheric drum ‘n bass from the master himself:

Once my friend (and T&E writer) Brittne described atmospheric drum ‘n bass as “when Mario gets a super star and he’s moving really fast and everything around him seems still.” I haven’t heard a more accurate comparison to this day.  ​​

***

​I often find myself asking artists in interviews about their favorite love song. If I were asked that question, no doubt that “I Only Have Eyes For You” - The Flamingos would be #1 on my list (though The Everly Brothers would take a close second spot) . This is the best love song of all time, in my opinion. Though it’s a bold claim, some things don’t need an explanation. It’s just beautiful.

​One of my favorite use of sampling in hip-hop is when The Fugees sampled that song in  “Zealots” off their legendary album The Score. Speaking of The Fugees, these are my top 3 favorite Lauryn Hill freestyles:
​
#3. The Fugees doing "How Many Mics" live at The Apollo, 1996. 
#2. Freestyle session on YO! MTV Raps 1994
#1. "Vocab" live performance with freestyled verses:

***

One of the most skipped over metal releases of last year, in my opinion, was They Came With Sunlight by a relatively new Norwegian sludge/doom/atmospheric space metal band SÂVER. I got a promo copy of this in my email and assumed they were already big, or at least would get a lot of attention because of how massive this album is. It seems that their following is still quite small for reasons unbeknownst to me. 
​

The way this album flows from heavy riffs to melodic grooves to cosmic atmospheric soundscapes is so seamless, and feels very much like you're hearing a story unfold. And the way the opening track leads in with that repetitive, droney bassline, builds up instrumentally and then just obliterates you with that crushing wall of sound...it freakin' rules, man. If you're a fan of Sumac or Isis, you'll especially enjoy this release.
​
Lead vocalist and bassist Ole Christian Helstad stated via their press release that “a lot of the lyrics are centered around the idea of leaving this world behind, towards something undefined, which makes the eternity of cosmos an inevitable image in the viewfinder. Like hitting the road, except upwards with no rearview mirror.” A great image to think about while you lay down, stare at your ceiling, and listen to this record.
​

***

​​Has anyone ever felt as though they’ve mourned for a home before? I’ve been very nostalgic for homes I’ve moved out of, but I recently moved from my beloved home of six years and it feels as though I’m suffering a loss. I wake up every morning and feel a certain emptiness not seeing the space I had created for myself. 

There’s a lot I miss about my old home. I miss the seaform green exterior. The lilac living room. The creaking of the wood floors. Waking up to the baby woodpeckers visiting my bedroom window. Sitting on my front porch and counting all the geckos on the ceiling (one time I counted 23!)  More than just mourning any physical or material loss, a home just carries a feeling that can’t be replicated anywhere else. That feeling where you step in and immediately feel like you’re in a space that is uniquely yours, a place that is a mirror image of your heart. 

​
I was speaking with my dear friend Jakub about this….differentiating a home with a shelter, mourning a space, and what a “home” even really means. Is a home the physical space that you put yourself in, or is it a place within yourself? Anyway, he sent me the song “10 James Orr Street”  by 80s Scottish new wave-pop duo Strawberry Switchblade:

---

​I want to stay in this house forever
I don't want to ever leave
How could I ever live in another
This is where I want to be

How very niche that there’s a song about missing a specific house, but how comforting to know that I’m not alone in this feeling. I’m sure a lot of people had to move recently due to the pandemic, so if you’re searching for a song to meditate on the loss and meaning of “home”, I recommend this one. (And if you’re reading this -- thank you, Jakub.)

***

Speaking of grief, I am also still working through the loss of my pet spider, Rosie. I got her about a month after I had moved into my previous home, and she unexpectedly passed away about two weeks before I moved out. It’s still difficult to talk about her so I won’t elaborate, but I wanted to tell y'all how the next day I was listening to Troy Nelson’s Afternoon Show on KEXP and wrote in a request for the song “Spider and Me” - King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. He ended up doing an entire set of spider songs and dedicated it to Rosie’s memory.

The set featured:

“The Spider and Me” - King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard
“Ole! Tarantula” - Robyn Hitcock
“Mama! There’s a Spider In My Room” - The Black Tones
“Spider Web” - The Budos Band

I wanted to share not only because that’s a great set of spider songs, but just as a testament to the heart of community radio. There’s nothing like connecting with real humans around the world live on the air, having your story told and listening to the experiences of others, all being connected through music. 

To folks reading this, what’s a song that reminds you of your pet? What’s your favorite radio station? Do you have any favorite memories of listening to the radio?

Here is a picture of Rosie’s resting place. She is buried under the willow tree I planted by my old house. I still go and visit, give her water, and play her favorite song.  ​

***

This blog went on far longer than I had expected, but I'll end in a memoriam to the greatest master of Persian classical music, ​Mohammad Reza Shajarian. 

​If you're unfamiliar with his him or his music I suggest first looking at the recent videos of the streets of Iran in order to understand just how influential and loved he was (and still is). Even weeks after his passing, people are flooding the streets singing his songs and leaving memorials. He was even buried next to Ferdowsi, who is one of the greatest figures in the history of literature, so that obviously says a lot on Shajarian's legacy. 

This song I placed above holds a huge significance for the people of Iran. Here's an excerpt from this excellent New York Times article explaining:

His most famous ballad, “Bird of Dawn,” based on an old Persian poem, became a protest song. At his concerts, whether in Tehran or in London, Paris or New York, people implored him to sing it. With his right hand on his heart he always obliged. As he sang in his familiar plaintive tenor, Mr. Shajarian embodied the pained bird, dramatizing in music and verse the struggle of a people:

Bird of dawn, start your lament, relight my anguish
Break this cage with your scintillating sighs and turn it upside down
Wing-tied nightingale, emerge from the cage corner
And sing the song of human freedom

An enraptured audience always joined the prayerlike refrain, expressing its desire for freedom from tyranny: “O God, O Heavens, O Nature, turn our dark night into morning!”

The poem on which the song is based dates to the 1920s, when Iranians’ hopes for representative government were crushed with Reza Pahlavi’s authoritarian takeover. Repression ensued, and the poem became a call to freedom. When Mr. Shajarian sang his lyrical version of that poem, fused in his voice were not only thousands of years of civilization and a storied musical and poetic tradition, but a century-long arc of a modern political struggle for freedom.

The performance always brings me to tears, especially when the crowd begins to sing along. Rest in peace to the legend, Mohammad Reza Shajarian. 

​***

​If you're interested in hearing more about Mohammad Reza Shahjarian, I discussed the importance of his music on my monthly radio spot on KXCI's Global Rhythm Radio (I also did a segment on Armenian music to raise awareness about the current genocide in Artsakh). I'm on every fourth Thursday of the month from 6 - 8 pm MST, streaming 91.3 FM in Tucson or anywhere around the global on kxci.org. You can hear past episodes on the archive available on their site. Episodes only stay up for two weeks, so after my show this month I'll start a MixCloud account.

My next show will be November 26th, 6 - 8 pm MST. Hope you can tune in!

***

Again, feel free to leave comments below with your favorite songs or whatever else is on your mind. Thank you for reading.

'Til next time,
​Parisa