The Acoustic Dance Music Revival – or ADM Revival, as they call themselves – is Mumbai-based music outfit with an average age of 22. Consisting of guitarists Nicholas Vaz and Nabeel Lakhani, and bassist Arjun Thakur, the trio play high-octane swing coupled with extensive improvisation, drawing inspiration from gypsy guitar genius Django Reinhardt.
On World Jazz Day today, they picked some of their favourite tracks.
The Dark Eyes
“One of the most famous traditional Russian folk songs, this tune became a staple of gypsy repertoire," said Vaz. "Having made its way across Europe through the culture of the Romani gypsies (whose origins can be traced back to Rajasthan), this folk song has undergone several musical evolutions. It was originally a love song, then an upbeat gypsy dance number made famous by Django Reinhardt in its swing jazz avatar.”
In this “modern metaphysical version of the song”, ADM Revival steers away from the standard swing tempo. “The song take us on a journey of the gypsy experience, starting slow and silent, as a love song, yet displaying a relentless increase in tempo, timbre and rhythm,” Vaz said. “It ends ending in true gypsy dance tradition.”
Blues en Mineur
“Django's style is rooted deep in the blues from which all jazz stems,” Vaz said. “The 12-bar blues pattern is one that features extensively in Django's work, yet every composition reveals a melody of personality and precision”.
Tea for Two
“One of Django's more famous improvisations, we gain insight into the continuity of his playing style, improvisational intricacy and impressionistic musical tendencies,” Vaz said.
Nuages
“A Django original, and a perfect representation of the metaphysical quality of Django's work,” Vaz said. "Nuages, meaning clouds, is a gypsy jazz standard, and transforms the abstract visual art of the skies into music. Like the sky, Nuages mimics its ever-changing nature. With over 13 recordings by Django alone, this piece takes the form of a gentle breeze, a raging storm and everything in between.”
Listen to more tracks by ADM Revival on Soundcloud and follow them on Facebook.
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On World Jazz Day today, they picked some of their favourite tracks.
The Dark Eyes
“One of the most famous traditional Russian folk songs, this tune became a staple of gypsy repertoire," said Vaz. "Having made its way across Europe through the culture of the Romani gypsies (whose origins can be traced back to Rajasthan), this folk song has undergone several musical evolutions. It was originally a love song, then an upbeat gypsy dance number made famous by Django Reinhardt in its swing jazz avatar.”
In this “modern metaphysical version of the song”, ADM Revival steers away from the standard swing tempo. “The song take us on a journey of the gypsy experience, starting slow and silent, as a love song, yet displaying a relentless increase in tempo, timbre and rhythm,” Vaz said. “It ends ending in true gypsy dance tradition.”
Blues en Mineur
“Django's style is rooted deep in the blues from which all jazz stems,” Vaz said. “The 12-bar blues pattern is one that features extensively in Django's work, yet every composition reveals a melody of personality and precision”.
Tea for Two
“One of Django's more famous improvisations, we gain insight into the continuity of his playing style, improvisational intricacy and impressionistic musical tendencies,” Vaz said.
Nuages
“A Django original, and a perfect representation of the metaphysical quality of Django's work,” Vaz said. "Nuages, meaning clouds, is a gypsy jazz standard, and transforms the abstract visual art of the skies into music. Like the sky, Nuages mimics its ever-changing nature. With over 13 recordings by Django alone, this piece takes the form of a gentle breeze, a raging storm and everything in between.”
Listen to more tracks by ADM Revival on Soundcloud and follow them on Facebook.