ALBUM REVIEW: FULL CIRCLE by SANJAY DIVECHA
Artist: Sanjay Divecha
Album: Full Circle
Label: Blue Frog Records
Release Date: 24 September 2008
Songs: 11
Noteworthy: Vaa Pudhu Ulahe and Invocation
Sanjay Divecha was always a music guy in quest for musical expression; a cross-border search that saw him delve into the physical and cultural. Graduating from Guitar Institute of Technology, part of Musician’s Institute in LA, Divecha has had the opportunity of working with the likes of Angelique Kidjo, Carlos Santana, Michael McDonald, Fred Raulston, Dave Weckl, Louis Johnson, Dumazz and Sambaguru. He also had the honour of studying with renowned guitarists like Scott Henderson, Joe DiOrio and Robben Ford.
Guitar God Divecha burst through when he joined powerful hands with A.R.Rahman for Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours. The movie garnering ‘Best Original Score’ saw now Mumbai-based Divecha shine. Apart from that, Divecha has also performed at the Playboy Jazz Festival, Hollywood Bowl and the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Apart from that, Divecha has worked closely with Argentinean composer Luis Bacalov.
Based in LA back in the day, Divecha worked as a session musician, performing Jazz, African, Brazilian, R&B and Gospel. His music currently include incorporating indo-centric folk traditions and classic al music. This began with his exploration of India in 2003. Post this came the release of Full Circle showcasing everything he was and is as a musician. The album was 2 years in the making and you can witness Kailash Kher, Kunal Ganjawalla, Ranjit Barot, Karl Peters and Vivek Rajagopalan to name a few lend their skills.
The music is exceptional. There is nothing negative that one can say about this album which is what made it very difficult to review. Every song has flavour and India in every beat. Divecha is an artist and those with him have just made him that much better. It has songs in multiple languages. Vaa Pudhu Ulahe is a Tamil number that I just adore; it uses the language to best of its advantage.
Naino Se, Pal Ke Pal and One Day are great slow numbers that you can listen to and discover new sounds and beats. Invocation is one that surprised me. Starting off like a number that could be used in prayer, the number moves smoothly into jazz and then bursting out with some traditional table that is just wonderful. Another nice song is Le Gayo Jiya which has a folk twist to it that is nothing short of melodious.
The one thing that doesn’t work is the English number Changing Seasons. The English sounds awkward and ruins the nice tune. Contrary to this, the title track Full Circle works very well. Very jazzy and slow, it sounds truly international. Guitar Duet is another one that confuses. While brilliant because of how much he has pushed the usage of the instrument, its borders on confusing.
All in all a great album, Divecha is an artist. With quite an imagination.
Photos: NH7 and oklisten
