Basant

Johnny Kalsi has been running the Dhol Foundation now for more than 25 years, while also banging his double-sided Punjabi dhol drum as a member of Fun-Da-Mental, Transglobal Underground and the Afro Celt Sound System, not to mention playing sessions for artists as diverse as Khaled and Avril Lavigne. His fifth album as a bandleader fuses Punjabi tradition, bhangra beats, a dash of Bollywood glitz and Western electronic pop tropes in thrilling fashion, aided by a cast of well-chosen collaborators.
The opener, ‘Thunder Drum’, ought to become his signature tune. ‘Buliyan Nu’ is a slice of Bollywood pop heaven with a lovely vocal by Beant Kaur. The inimitable Angélique Kidjo adds her magic to ‘Ewa Ka Lo Dja Ye’ and other guest vocalists include Nawazish Ali Khan, Rossabella Gregory and Steve Knightley of UK folk duo Show of Hands. Indian flute, fiddle and sarangi (bowed lute) weave in and out of the thundering percussion and Western rock instrumentation. One might liken the effect to hearing the Afro Celt Sound System filtered via the Punjab and given a makeover in Bollywood.