Title: High Hills in the Creaving Road
Artist: Mawwal
Label: CD Baby
Product Type: COMPACT DISCS
UPC: 747014612026
Genre: International

Oct. 25th 2011: the most interesting world fusion One of the most interesting world fusion groups in the United States is Mawwal. -World Music Central Oct 9th 2011: one of the best I have heard Sight Up is a world fusion album and it is one of the best I have heard. And the best part for me at least, is the exceptional melodies sprinkled over the entire album, like a layer of goodness just waiting to be absorbed. -Sea of Tranquility Sept 14, 2011: a rewarding listen Sight Up is an album that doesn't sound like much of anything else, a combination of sounds Eastern and Western held together by the lyrical glue of Matus' visions. It's a disc full of accomplished musicians delivering sounds that channel a wide-ranging brand of mysticism, and a rewarding listen. -Valley Advocate February 14, 2009 : in Matus this all combines to a great totality Whether it's Middle Eastern percussion tribal rhythms from Africa or Klezmer influences in Matus this all combines to a great totality. The end result is not western music with a folkloristic character but rather, here different beginnings are fused The guitar may howl measures become oblique but finally the common rhythm according to which all people pulsate unites everything - progressive newsletter October 01, 2008 : magically mesmerizing Unconventional, fantastical and delightfully extravagant, Mawwal's This Is All There Is There Is No Other Place is magically mesmerizing - World Music Central September 15, 2008 : rebellious, bold and independent Mawwal's messages have a subtle political bent, and their daring music also displays something rebellious, bold and independent. It's nice to see melodic creativity that incorporates elements of adventure, excitement, challenge and danger - Joe Ross/Independent reviewer September 01, 2008 : Jill O'Brien's haunting vocals soar Taking the title from a passage by Terrence McKenna on transcendental revelation, Jim Matus (also of Paranoise) and company have prepared a world-beat platter that is a big step forward from previous efforts, particularly regarding focus and execution of intent. Concentrating on Middle Eastern and central Asian musics, Mawwal has practically created a neo-trad subgenre, a sort of ethno-specific folk that utilizes authentic instruments (djembe, laouto, saz), but isn't allergic to the occasional infectious occidental rock groove. Jill O'Brien's haunting vocals soar, whether supporting Matus's chesty tenor or while soloing. Violinist Rohan Gregory lays down a fiery solo on "Bela Sehida (Land of the Martyrs)." "Allah Hu (Only God)" features a furious Harshal Tole tabla cadenza, and none other than Percy Jones delivers his trademark slippery fretless bass work on three cuts. By focusing on the music of war-torn regions in the greater Near East, and that of stateless peoples from that same region, Mawwal -- as with most of Matus's efforts -- serves as a conscience for those privileged few whose status draws from the exploitation of the not-so-fortunate many - John Patrick/Progression August 01, 2008 : I could listen to this over and over forever All taken, this is an excellent second step; I could listen to this over and over forever! - Peter Thelen/Expose July 15, 2008 : faultless laouto, saz and mandocello work The songs are traditional of the Afghanistan, Pakistan regions and they have been arranged here by Jim Matus, creating a style that pulses energy and radiates warmth and tranquility, forming the heart of the Mawwal sound. This core sound is driven by faultless laouto, saz and mandocello work, accompanied by excellent tabla and violin mastery. The bass and drum work steers the fusion of East and West, and the vocal only edges the compositions further into a cultural understanding. - Aural inovations June 01, 2008 : Feed Your Head From the first track, listening to Mawwal this is all there is there is no other place is like absorbing some bizarre hallucinogenic compound through your armpits in a Waziristan sweat lodge. Drawing heavily on traditional Middle Eastern South Asian music and academic icons like Joe Zawinul and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan the contemporary arrangement of these rooted in tradition pieces is well seriously cool. Stringed-instrumentalist/vocalist and Mawwal mastermind Jim Matus has gathered a band of musically-possessed individuals that includes deep, entrancing subsonic fretless bassist Joe OBrien, semi-tone vocalist Jill OBrien and violinist Rohan Gregory. Percussion is provided (in the form of drums, tablas, djembes, dumbeks and many other instruments) by a host of schooled professionals and world travelers including Harshal Tole, Mike Keyes, Shane Shanahan and the ever-present Tony Vacca. Mawwal's old new fusion has overtones of Peter Gabriel or Paul Simon mining African and South American musical paradigms, though it seems to incorporate mostly Pakistani and Afghani influences. There are elements of aboriginal chant as well; though there is nary a didgeridoo on the record, there are droning, Tuvan throat-singing vocals that simulate the trance-like qualities of that instrument. It is music that breathes, and quite palpably, like the walls of my dorm room did one day many years ago, in an isolated Vermont boarding school. The whole seems heavily influenced by the psychedelic, in the intense, spiritual sense of the term. This is evidenced not only by the CD cover art-photos of freak rock formations called 'fairy chimneys,' from the Cappadocia region of Turkey-but also by their quoting Terrence McKenna on the CD insert. McKenna theorized worlds that were all but imperceptible without the aid of psychedelics, and had some pretty smart stuff to say about it all: 'Right here and now, one quanta away, there is a raging universe of active intelligence that is transhuman and hyperdimensional. The true situation in which we are embedded is an organism, an organization of active intelligence on a galactic scale.' Mawwal have certainly captured this vibe, and if it's one you like to connect to, you will dig the hell out of these folks. - Tom Sturm/Valley Advocate February 24, 2008 : Mawwal is the product of a firmly grounded vision Mawwal is the product of a firmly grounded vision. Band mastermind Jim Matus weaves traditional lyrics from Bulgaria, Libya, Sufi songs, and Malinke chants into lush rock arrangements. At the same time, he casts the music against a backdrop of radical political dissent, and roots it in compassion, brotherhood, and anger". / HARTFORD ADVOCATE - Dan Barry/ Hartford Advocate January 01, 2008 : This was world fusion the way it should be done I don't know why I did not slide this one into the player the moment it arrived. Boom! Right off the bat it grabbed me with drums the size of a continent massed vocals and a bit later electric guitar and bass. And that bass! The unmistakable sound sent me running for the credits, yes, there it was: Percy jones. By the time the electric violin entered I was hooked. This was world fusion the way it should be done. - Jon Davis/Expose December 01, 2007 : nothing short of spectacular. a fascinating brew For the first impression of Black Flies it's hard to get beyond wow! For me this is what progressive music is all about. For my taste this is album is just about perfect in every way. The compositions are intricate and engaging and the musical performances are nothing short of spectacular. a fascinating brew. Bumping this album off my Best of 2007 list this year will be quite a feat. Black Flies is essential! - Gibraltar Encyclopedia Of progressive Rock November 15, 2007 : Mawwal's world fusion is peerless Mawwal's world fusion is peerless in it's passion and delivery - Mac Beaulieu/Expose August 20, 2007 : Percy Jones's fretless growl "Woven among Libyan folk melodies, Tuvan overtone "throat singing," and Pakistani qawwali performances, Percy Jones's fretless growl buttresses this assembly of compositions and arrangements by sonic architect Jim Matus. Percy's earthy tone and fr

Tracks:
1.1 Youmala
1.2 One More Arabia
1.3 Mustt Mustt
1.4 We Must Fall
1.5 High Hills in the Creaving Road
1.6 Khawaja Pia
1.7 No Finer Men Than We
1.8 Kosh Chenar / the Burden'd Air / Eleven Shreds of No

Audio Sample:
All soundclips are provided by Tidal and are for illustrative purposes only. For some releases, the tracks listed may not accurately represent the tracks on the physical release.