The road

"Iranian singer Mamak Khadem is set to dazzle fans with her latest The Road ... Brimming over with Ms. Khadem's extraordinary vocals, The Road is a musical map crafted out of traditional melodies from Iran, Bulgaria, Serbia and Greece. Fans are treated to a rich, dense tapestry of perfectly intertwined musical influences threaded together by Ms. Khadem's soaring vocals so that places on the map become simply a musical fantasyland ... The Road mesmerizes with a first class lineup of musicians like guitarists Jorge Strunz and Ardeshir Farah, jazz percussionist Mino Cinelu, Macedonia's brass band Agusevi Dzambo Orkestar, Bulgarian group Pazardjik Ensemble, Persian tombak, dayereh and daf player Pezhham Akhavass and Persian kamancheh player Mehdi Bagheri (...), creating a lush landscape filled to overflowing with flute, table, tar, setar, cello, keyboard, riq, tambur and big bold brass without ever losing its way".

Læs anmeldelse

"Mamak Khadem (...) takes eclecticism to an interesting new level. Her latest release (...) is masterful in its scope and execution. Khadem takes full control of a range of vocal styles from Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece and her native Iran whilst her supporting musicians are equally adept at performing in a wide range of vernacular styles and fusing those styles into a whole which is so much more than the sum of the parts ... The opening track, "A Thousand Strings", is a good snapshot of the whole recording. Starting with a John Martyn "Glistening Glyndebourne"-style echo guitar, it seamlessly moves into some beautiful Bulgarian singing reminiscent of Trio Bulgarka, which then progresses into a lovely Spanish guitar interlude composed by Jorge Strunz, initially slow but then fast and fluid. After this impressive opener the whole CD opens up into a rainbow of sounds and styles ... This recording is the crowning glory to Mamak Khadem's long and colourful career in Europe, Iran andtheUSA".