Unfortunately, not everyone who values traveling has the time and/or lucre to do so. Thankfully, artists like Kamran Hooshmand
& 1001 Nights give us glimpses into other places and realities; in the case of Salaam, the journey is taken via Iberian, Greek,
Persian, and Armenian music. "Shirin Jun (Dear Shirin)," starts with percussionist Erin Foster beating out the ghost-like gait
rhythm on the darabukkah frame drum accompanied in melody by Roberto Riggio on violin and Hooshmand on saz, a Middle
Eastern lute with a long neck and tied on gut-string frets whose pulling atmospheric sound reinforces the Iranian love song's
sense of longing. Riggio's sublime solo on "Del-e Divaaneh (Crazy Heart)" is a voyage in and of itself; and Hooshmand treks
gracefully between the vocals, saz, oud (the Middle Eastern forerunner of the guitar), and gut-string guitar. The thing
preventing Salaam (the term means "peace" in Arabic and is a typical greeting in the Middle East) from being a better voyage -
and it's still a damn fine one on this local indie label - is the teasing, just under
30-minute length. Then again this release, recorded on the KUT LiveSet program during a full moon evening in the summer of
'96, is only a self-described sampler of what the band can do. Let's hope there's more in the works, for while it's ideal to travel
in the first person, praise The Maker for giving us aural ambassadors like Kamran Hooshmand and 1001 Nights.
3.5 stars - David Lynch -
The Austin Chronicle - Record Review
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1001nights@farsinet.com
