Oojami

One under-represented influecne in world fusion music is Turkish. Aside from Tarkan (arguably more Western than Turkish) very little of Turkey's rich musical heritage has made it into world fusion music. The notable exception is Oojami - at least during their first two albums. Oojami was founded by Neomi Cavli, who was born in Turkey but moved to England where he became involved with London's vibrant world fusion club scene. Their instrumentation and is mostly Turkish with some electronics rounding out the sound. Especailly their debut album was Turkish music updated with modern styles rather than the usual electronica with some native rifts laid on over.

Bellydancing Breakbeat burst onto scene with ecstatic fervor. From the opening track you are catapulted into a whirling dervish of trance dance heavily influenced by traditional Turkish melodies and rhythms. The percussion is heavy, the volume loud, and the pace frantic. Great stuff, very upbeat and fun, and an absolute must for anyone into electronic dance music. Urban Dervish was tamer than its predecessor, still a solid effort but at times weighed by a melancholy undertone. It lacked the fresh fun of the debut album. In the third CD, Boom Shinga Ling, they shockingly abandon the sound that made their first two albums so amazing. All of the soul and driving rhythms are gone, replaced with a tinny pseudo-klezmer beat and really ridiculous hip-hop rapping. From ethno techno to milquetoast hip-hop klezmer? What the heck happened? Very sad. This one bombed sales wise and no suprise there. Hopefully their next release will return to their Turkish roots.

Oojami still performs at the Hubble Bubble club in London, created by Cavli, and at ethnic arts festivals across the U.K. and Europe.