Tale Yâd

This disc could have been an interesting excursion into the traditions of northern Greece, the Black Sea and Iran, all suitably mixed up and feeding off each other. However, I’m afraid the resulting music doesn’t quite match up to the promising idea. Coalescing around the Iranian percussionist Bijan Chemirani, the group mixes largely Greek and Iranian musicians and uses texts in French, Greek and Farsi, taken from a variety of sources. As I was listening I was waiting for a track to really grab me but after a while it all started to merge into one. There are lots of drones overlain with loose improvisations that don’t seem to lead anywhere in particular, and the overall feel of the subdued compositions is a bit passé, not helped by the bland use of electronics.

It would make admirable film music but, with the exception of the very low vocals on ‘Filou mou sa tha Vriskeste’, the ninth track, this is eminently forgettable stuff.