God is not a terrorist

"Because Saami travels through his music's accompanying drones, provided here by harmonium and tambura, and occasionally with the help of other vocalists, he often sounds as if his voice is coming up from inside the music. Nowhere is this better shown than on the album's centerpiece, the nearly-19 minute "Longing." Here, over a wavering drone, he weaves and bobs, moans unhurriedly, and begins and ends vocal phrases as if he's gliding ... Supposedly, Saami, at the age of 75, is the last practitioner of Surti left. His use of a 49-note scale, where Arabic, Sanskrit, Hindi, Urdu, and gibberish collide, is considered controversial in an Islamic society because it pre-dates Mohammed".

Read review

"When he loosens his voice and drops multiple octaves, it's almost sinister' ... The 76-year-old music virtuoso released his first record last year. He's the last surviving practitioner of a 13th century tradition at risk of dying with him".

Read review