An eclectic mix of beats, layers, and chants.

Todays show is a flow of music and exclusive interview segments with Aykanna and the Kirtaniyas.

We kick off with some words and sounds from sacred-music duo Sukhdev and Akahdahmah Jackson. In this segment they talk about the ancient Arameic version of the Lord’s Prayer with reflections on it’s meaning, their individual and combined journeys coming to Kundalini Yoga, the experience of chanting collectively, yoga and kirtan festivals and festival culture, and their upcoming performance schedule.

The songs we hear are Bluezone and Ek Ong Kaur from the release Mother, Om Namo Gurudev Namo from Livelight, and Funky Divinity from Mantra Mala. We also hear the instrumentals Morning Ragga and Rising Oneness during interview segments, both of which can be found on their Livelight album.

Next we chat with Vijay of the Kirtaniyas, a four-piece kirtan band who have been noticeably active on the festival circuit in the past few years, and who have generated much appreciation from fellow chanters.

Vijay talks about his love for kirtan and how the group originally came to be, the adaptation of styles and moods in different venues and environments, their electronic kirtan project and collaborating with other artists, time spent in India and pilgrimage, the Mantras Beats and Bass tour, and their upcoming releases, including an album produced by world music fusion pioneer Cheb I Sabbah.

Musically in this segment we hear the tracks Govinda Jaya Jaya sung by Rasika, Radha Ramana sung by Vijay with production by DJ Drez, Braj Mahamantra also led by Vijay, and Gopi Lullaby performed by Sarasvati.

In addition we hear some excellent background sounds from Chinmaya Dunster and Eastern Sun.

(Aykanna and the Kirtaniyas will both be performing at Shaktifest in Joshua Tree, CA in mid-May)

Alternate MP3 Link – Mantra Radio – May 9th 2013.mp3

An eclectic mix of beats, layers, and chants.

This episode is a flow of music from, and exclusive interviews with, Beatfarmer, David Starfire, Govinda, and dancer Taiya Curle. It also explores the sacred space of the contemporary dancefloor, and how mantra is being used as a tool in that environment to create depth and connection.

To get things rolling, we hear a track by the Desert Dwellers entitled Sunrise at Sindhu from the release Muladhara Yoga Dub. This leads us into the first interview segment.

Adam Wood, otherwise known as Beatfarmer, is an electronic music producer from the gulf islands of British Columbia, Canada. In this interview he talks about the sacred dancefloor, connecting to something higher than ourselves, community, the voice as an instrument for expression, and our instinctive attraction to primal rhythm. We also hear a track from him entitled Native State (Tribe Mix), and in the background Until Next Morning (Cave to Sky Mix) from his latest album release, Mantra.

More music from Beatfarmer, Path to Peace, carries into the next segment with David Starfire. In this interview David talks about his journey both musically and spiritually, his initial exposure to world music, and bringing these worlds together. He shares some background on his recently started project with fellow producer Freq Nasty called Dub Kirtan All-Stars, and talks about transformation festivals and people waking up to a larger reality of connectivity. Musically, we hear the track Radhe Govinda from DKAS’s newest release entitled Subsonic Devotion. Also heard is a remix by Adham Shaikh of David’s track Flying Carpet, from the album Bollywood Bass.

Next up, Shane O’Madden, aka Govinda, tells us the story of how he came to use the name for his music project. He also talks about his collaboration with Irina Mikhailova on the track Candle Fire from his latest album Resonance, a song which features the Green Tara mantra – “Om Tare Tu Tare Tura Swaha”. And in a similar vein he elaborates on his collaboration with Mohammed Firuzi on the track Rumi Love Poem, a piece which contains Farsi poetry by the great mystic, Rumi. After hearing the song itself, Shane explains the driving force behind his work, and talks about transformation festival culture and the range of experiences potentially held therein. Shaolin Clouds by the Desert Dwellers is heard in the background, which carries us into the next part of the show.

Taiya Curle is a dancer who brings the sacred into her performance. In this segment she talks about sound as therapy, dance as ritual, prayer and intention in dance, surrendering to the moment, and her healing experiences with chanting and chakra toning. Musically we hear another song from Beatfarmer entitled Mantra, and the track Peaceful Om’s from the Desert Dwellers.

The show is capped off with a beautiful and melodic track from Rising Appalachia & The Human Experience entitled Sunu, from The Bloom Soundtrack – Volume 1.

We’d like to offer a big thank-you to Nils of Beats Without Borders for his help organizing these interviews!.

Alternate MP3 Link – Mantra Radio – May 2nd 2013.mp3

An eclectic mix of beats, layers, and chants.

We kick things off in this episode with a beautiful track by Bachan Kaur entitled We All Want Love, a collaboration with producer and yogi Mahan Kalpa Singh which features the kundalini chant “Ra Ma Da Sa Sat Say So Hung”. In the notes for the release MADA Love, from which this song is from, we find the words “.. each song springs forth from the deep spiritual experience of the soul journey here on earth and the authentic longing for truth and love.”

From the classic 1972 release Ah by Bhagavan Das comes the track Radhe, a deeply meditational piece with voice, ektara, and simple percussive sounds. He sings the words “Radhe .. Bolo .. Radhe Govinda”, chants to the divine couple Radha and Krishna. Following in the same thread School of Braja perform the hypnotic Supreme Goddess Meditations from their self-titled release. A track produced by electronic music producer and DJ, Mark Pritchard.

Next is a short piece entitled Nana Maia, or Lullaby to Illusion, from Silvia Nakkach and Christopher Eickmann, followed by a similarly short recording named Pranam (Prayer) from MC Yogi’s Pilgrimage album. We hear then from Mother Medicine with chants associated with the goddess Lalita-Tripurasundari, or Goddess of the Three Cities. This is sung by Kathryn Green to the accompaniment of Gabriel Logan Braun on Didgeridoo, and comes from a self-titled release. The set is capped-off by Mahasukha with the Buddhist chant “Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum” from his release Longing. The track is entitled Padmasambhava Mantra II and is a meditation on Guru Rinpoche, sometimes referred to as the second Buddha.

The show ends with a combination of hang drum by Masood Ali Khan, flute by Steve Gorn, and the Maha-Mantra chanted by Kayamani Devi. The song comes from the Yoga Sessions release entitled Hang with Angels.

Alternate MP3 Link – Mantra Radio – April 11th 2013.mp3

An eclectic mix of beats, layers, and chants.

The first track of this episode is a chant to Shiva or Nataraja, a name meaning the “lord or king of dance”. In parts of the Vedic literatures it is described that Shiva performs his Tandava dance, and in doing so dissolves the entire cosmic creation, making way for a new instance of the same to come into being. The vocals are sung by Nicolle Jensen, and the track is produced by the Desert Dwellers, released on an album entitled Muladhara Yoga Dub.

We hear next from MC Yogi from his recent release entitled Pilgrimage. This dubbed-out gem is called Temple Light and kicks off with these thoughtful words – “Temple light shining on the altar made of earth .. feel the one light shine across the universe”…

The second set starts with a song by Luis Camino and his Abya Yala project containing sanskrit poetry written by the great 16th century saint, Tulsidas. The words come from a book entitled Ramcharitamanas, sometimes referred to as Tulsi’s Ramayana. This book reveals details of the life of the avatar Rama and his feminine counterpart Sita. Next we hear Avari, with a song from the first Bloom Series soundtrack, entitled Of The Heavens, followed by another beautiful piece from the album Medicine Melodies, by Silvia Nakkach and Christopher Eickmann. The song is called Sri Narayani Amma, and features the chant “Sri Amma Namo’stu’te”. The word Amma refers to the Divine Mother, and Namo’stu’te is an offering of respect and love, opening oneself to receive blessings and divine guidance.

More chants to the Goddess follow, this time as Ma Durga, with a track entitled Sri Durga Stotram. This is sung by Tritha Sinha and comes from a release entitled Chitraanjali. The middle set of the show is capped-off with the Mayapuris and a reflective piece entitled Gopinath, which also features the instrumental talents of Shantala’s Benji Wertheimer. The song contains words written in the 16th century by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and expresses the feelings of total surrender in love to the Supreme, as demonstrated by Krishna’s one true love Radharani.

The show ends with the poetry and beats of Chances R Good from his release entitled Boomerangs, with a song called Who Am I? – a flow all about spotting and dissolving that pesky false ego. “Who is the question, Am is the Essence, I is the witness, abide with total presence” …

Alternate MP3 Link – Mantra Radio – April 4th 2013.mp3

An eclectic mix of beats, layers, and chants.

The first track of todays show, entitled Above All Else, contains poetry from the great mystic Kabir. He was born in India during the 15th century, externally living the life of a weaver, but internally absorbed in thoughts of, and dance with, his Divine Beloved. “All manner of men, the most wise and the ordinary, the priest and scholars, none can unravel your mysteries. Seeking to unravel your mysteries, they turn mad, drunk”. This song is performed by Shubha Mudghal from an album entitled No Stranger Here, which was co-produced by Business Class Refugees.

From Morley’s Rhythms and Improv release comes a track called Om Peme Jungne, performed and sung by legendary jazz drummer and percussionist, Hamid Drake. This ten-minute journey contains such mantras as “Om Ar Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum”, a Buddhist chant associated with Padmasambhava or Guru Rinpoche, and “Jai Ma”, a prayer for the Divine Mother in the sanskrit language.

We hear another beautiful track, Monk Invocation, from Silvia Nakkach’s release Medicine Melodies, which was co-produced with Christopher Eickmann. Next up is Dub Sutra aka Chris and Charlotte Proud from their release The Rise of Downtempo, a flow of subtle beats, spacey and melodic live instrumentation, and various chants. The track is called Ascentia and is layered in this episode with the Maha-Mantra, sung by Ilan Chester, and some chants to Ma Durga from Durga Stotram, performed by Tritha Sinha.

The last song of the show is by Dub FX (aka Benjamin Stanford) and comes from the first Bloom soundtrack, a collection of music from the series of the same name which documents the current state of transformational festival culture around the globe. The track is called One and contains words expressing and elaborating on the intrinsic connection in spirit, shared by everything, and everyone.

Alternate MP3 Link – Mantra Radio – March 28th 2013.mp3