Nitin Sawhney

Nitin Sawhney's Beyond Skin works on at least two levels. First, it's a plea against racism and war, relating, as Sawhney writes in the liner notes, that one's identity is defined only by oneself – that identity is "beyond skin." Second, the music is an extremely accomplished blend of classical, drum'n'bass, jazz, hip-hop, and Indian elements. The album's political statements are seen most clearly in the samples imbedded in the beginning and ending of most tracks. Dealing with nuclear testing and identity, the samples are effective in setting the tone for the songs. The music is quite lush, featuring among other instruments, tablas, pianos, and cellos to equally beautiful effect. The production brings a crystal-clear polish to nearly every element in the mix, whether it's the passionate, intense vocals of the Rizwan Qawwali Group on "Homelands" or the stunning, impossibly gorgeous voice of Swati Natekar on "Nadia." The entire album is bathed in eclectic touches which never fail to maintain a poetic, accessible sense of charm and wonder. Rarely has electronic music been crafted with as much substance and style as it has on Beyond Skin. Sawhney travels back and forth between genres quite effortlessly. The album was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

With Beyond Skin, Nitin Sawhney set a high bar for global fusion music. Now he's raised it with Prophesy, taking advantage of a larger budget to bring in Indian strings, a South African choir, a Chicago cabbie, soul singer Terry Callier, and Nelson Mandela, among many other things. But what could have been an awkward grab bag of sound comes together under Sawhney's sure hands and inspired songwriting. He makes the unusual work. On "Sunset," for instance, flamenco and rai meet Brazil, and the vocals of Cheb Mami and Nina Miranda work to glorious effect. Trilok Gurtu contributes some stunning kannakol (vocal percussion) to "Breathing Light," while Natacha Atlas beguiles with her singing on "Acquired Dreams." But this is more than a collection of great tunes–it's an album that ponders the way our world and civilization is developing, asking questions and challenging assumptions while still delivering some sumptuous grooves and melodies.

2011 release, the ninth album from the Indian-British musician, producer and composer. Last Days Of Meaning is an eclectic and ambitious record. Conceived by Sawhney as a script before it became an album, and written and recorded in just five months, `Last Days Of Meaning' traces the character of Donald Meaning (played by John Hurt), an embittered old Dickensian man, fearful of immigrants, terrorists and the outside world. He sits in a room raging against childhood memories, society, himself and a small tape recorder sent to him by his ex-wife (the cassette-recorder contains the songs of the album).

Not content with DJing his way around the world, writing for symphony orchestras or composing film soundtracks, the workaholic Sawhney returns with another wildly varied selection of global pop songs. In the past he has sometimes sounded too clever for his own good, as with the barrage of archive fragments on his last album, Human, but this is his most assured, relaxed and successful work yet. The starting point may be cool, contemporary pop ballads like Spark, but he soon veers off into a musical travelogue, mixing strings, flute or sitar in with his keyboards and programmed beats. There's a bit of everything in here, from songs like Dead Man, with its seamless switching between an all-American blues-like riff and an Asian theme, through to a dash of gospel and funk, a poem in Hindi read by his mother, or the more urgent, passionate flamenco-influenced songs featuring Ojos de Brujo, with Nitin joining in on guitar as well.