CHARANJIT SINGH
10 Ragas to a Disco Beat
(Bombay Connection)
Pure zaniness: acid house from 1982 — up to four years before the genre was invented — that demonstrates Bollywood composer Singh’s intuitive and innovative proficiency with the genre’s prototypical Roland keyboards and drum machines. This reissue removes the word synthesizing from the beginning of the album’s initial title, to downplay the kitsch factor, I guess. The mix of repetition and raga variation runs from meditative to maddening and is sometimes outright revelatory. One of a kind. After the jump, check out a comic and informative short movie from last year in which an enthusiast seeks out and meets Singh, and a few tracks from the album. As one online commentator suggests, it’s time to put a bindi on the acid smiley.
Charanjit Singh: 2010 (short film):
Charanjit Singh, “Raga Bhairav” (from 10 Ragas to a Disco Beat):
Charanjit Singh, “Raga Megh Malkar” (from 10 Ragas to a Disco Beat):