OK

Pretty nice nix of South Asian stuff and dnb, some very well produced songs here it just turns out that like half are pretty boring

Yeah, there’s lots going on. Voices, instruments, Melodie’s all blur together but that’s not a bad thing. It’s like the beat background music you’ve heard, never quite enough to force its way forward and become something you really inhabit but entertaining

11 songs - 1 hour fav song - Light interesting, I don't think I would ever listen to it again, but I didn't hate it I could see it being good for filming projects

2.6

A mildly interesting conception of a fusion of Indian and techno electronica. Due to my lack of knowledge (culture and language) this comes over as more a mood piece than anything, and sort of what they were doing for anything exotic or future worldly in movies or games, the cyberpunk east future thing springs to mind. Which probably is way off but I kind of enjoyed taking it as that in the background. So it was ok, and heard it, 3 stars

“Ok” is a bit of false advertising. It was less than ok.

OK feels like E1 waking up. It is absolutely a late-90s club record: junglist percussion, drum-and-bass programming, chill-room spaces, sampled voices, sub-bass and electronics. But Singh keeps opening that world out until it contains Indian classical forms, Okinawan voices, flute, tabla, strings, trumpet and several different ideas of rhythm, space and belonging. What makes it work is that it never feels like ground-hopping. This is not the digital-nomad cosmopolitanism of M.I.A.’s Kala, moving visibly from place to place and collecting sonic passports. OK feels much more Brick Lane. The world is already in the room. “Traveller” is both manifesto and overture. Its first few minutes are much too rhythmically busy for the lazy chill-room pigeonhole, before the track opens into flute, drones and those beautifully saturated strings. From there, the album keeps changing the way rhythm works. Sometimes the tabla and electronics converse; sometimes human vocal percussion is chopped until it becomes almost machine-like; sometimes the beat becomes properly junglist. Yet for all that density, there is enormous space here. “Mombasstic” may be the album’s most interesting example. Singh’s father was expelled from East Africa, and the track is full of displacement: chattering multinational voices, wandering trumpet, rhythms so dense yet strangely uncentred that you keep wondering where the hell you are meant to put your feet. That feels like more than a dance-floor problem. Where do expelled people put their feet? India, East Africa, Britain: the album is full of inherited routes, overlapping cultures and people who can be claimed by several places without belonging uncomplicatedly to any of them. The rhythmic instability makes that almost bodily. The title track takes the same multiplicity somewhere much more joyous. Okinawan voices, percussion, electronics and everything else pile together into glorious ordered chaos. It has always put a massive smile on my face. It sounds like ecstatic communalism: several identities remaining audible while still producing one collective surge. Later, “Soni” quietly turns towards widowhood, Mirabai, funeral pyres and the refusal to become what your culture tells you to become. The freedom to dance. Again, Singh never waves a placard explaining the theme. The depth is embedded in the music rather than announced. That may be why much of the criticism around OK feels so glib. It tends to stop at “Asian Underground”, “East meets West”, “tabla plus electronics”, as though listing the ingredients explains the meal. It doesn’t. OK is much more cosmopolitan than “British Asian” suggests, and much more groundedly urban. It sounds like late-90s London before Hoxton had fully coalesced around itself, before the culture became self-conscious enough to parody itself, before somebody inevitably opened a café selling bowls of breakfast cereal. There is a lovely sense here of a city assembling itself from migration, club culture, technology, inherited traditions and overheard voices. And the funny thing is that for all this depth, you can also just leave the record running. It never behaves like an Important Mercury Prize Winner. It has too much lightness, mobility and good humour for that. Historically canonical, critically under-read, and musically far more interesting than the phrase “fusion” has any right to suggest.

I don’t quite fully comprehend what is going on in this album but it is genius nonetheless

Shite

Never before has an album's title so accurately described how I feel about the album. This album is, in fact, OK. It's not much more than that though. But you know what? That's better than I thought it'd be. I went into this expecting something mediocre, but I was pleasantly surprised to have found some semblance of value in this album. I do have issues, obviously. It runs a bit too long and none of the songs stand out as being particularly great, but I really didn't hate this at all. This album was a lot more atmospheric than I expected it be. I thought this was really going to focus on the whole "British electronica" thing and less on the Indian influences, but said influences were fairly present on the album and they added atmosphere to the music that worked somewhat well. This didn't feel like the other "British/Indian Electronic Hybrid" albums that I've heard from artists like Nitin Sawhney and Cornershop. This was a bit better than those ones. But, at the end of the day, OK is just OK. While it certainly lives up to its name, it didn't go further than that for me. Still, being OK is hardly a bad thing, and OK is hardly a bad album, even if it's not for me. Decent 3/5.

Some enjoyable parts

This is background music. Nothing stood out to me there are a few cool layers that are scattered throughout this album but they are so sparse that I can't remember what track(s). I don't think I will revisit this album.

It might be a little harsh to give this a 1 but I really couldn't wait for it to be over.

At this point, just kill me. This is a boycot rating. Author has zero electronica ball knowledge

not understanding the hate. really good drum and bass with a southern asian flare. if some fuckass white dj from london made this album yall would be all over it i guarantee it. does drag on a little tho tbh

Not OK. Not sure what criteria was used to determine the worthiness of this album being included, but I don’t agree.

English electronica with a mix of east and south Asian fusion. I didn't really like it much.

Yep, it was a good album, something a little different from what we've seen so far.

after listening to Gorillaz's "The Mountain", I feel like that's a better blend of eastern/indian music and electronic sensibilties. This isn't bad to listen to just feels like flutes and sitars over breakbeats.

Sure. Why not.

Kind of cool didn’t hate it sounds like a Bollywood theme

An interesting concept and experience, but it didn't really make me feel anything and a lot of it felt like it went on longer than it needed to.

I quite like it as wallpaper, but I assume it's not intended to be listened to passively.

I liked this, but could only take a song or maybe two at a time.

Nope

Title is quite accurate: it was, in fact, OK.

interesting 4/10

Not at all appealing to me. Sounds like a bad dj tried to meld music and failed.

Ok

I enjoyed quite a lot :) Unique to a lot of what I've listened to, but the woodwind was majestic. Might listen to more indian music

The mercury prize doesn’t necessitate inclusion on this list.

some songs almost made me fall asleep (positive)

I found this utterly mesmerising

Great album! I love the synthetic sound encorporated with the classic sounds of India!

I gave this a few listens as I wasn't really sure about it the first time round. At times OK was good, at times it felt like there was too much going on and for a lot of the album I felt like I'd wandered into a student's bedroom after they'd taken mushrooms for the first time and was being lectured on how we're all connected and the superiority of eastern philosophies. As much as I hate going for the obvious. Overall, OK was ok. I don't think I'd go out of my way to hear it again, but I had a nice enough time.

Wow, after reading the inital notes, this album sounds like it will be super interesting. Never heard of Talvin Singh. Traveller felt like sucha journey from start to end. Such a cool song.

I HATE Drum N Bass. Yet the mix of Indian Bhangra and late 90's Jazz made it slightly more tolerable. But it SHOULDN'T BE ON THIS LIST.

Indian electronic. Pretty fun

I think this one is better than OK. It's a fun and interesting mix of Eastern and Electronic music, with some great soundscapes and beats. It's certainly not a perfect album, and I think that the tracks work best when they're purely instrumental. Still, I can see myself coming back to this one occasionally. Favorite track: "Light"

not my thing

Really liked this when it came out. Still as good.

I immediately got pretentious vibes from the first track. "The world is sound" repeated over lazy electronic music with random vocals does not set a great tone for the album moving forward. Turned this off after track 4. If you like this sort of thing more power to you, I do not.

Traveller - 2 Butterfly - 2 Sutrix - 2 Mombasstic - 2 Decca - 1 Eclipse - 1 Ok - 2 Light - 2 Disser/point.mento.b - 1 Soni - 1 Vikram the vampire - 1

odio este tipo de musica, me incomoda por alguna razon. no le pongo un 1 porque no es objetivamente malo pero no me parece algo que una persona normal se siente a escuchar, parece mas el menu de un juego de la play 2/10

I was very excited for this album! I really like the tabla, I like Indian music, but the bad drum and bass is bad and all the voiceovers are really annoying. This is a rough one. It has its moments (the beginning of Light is chill), but as a whole this is pretty grating.

Lite intressanta ljud, bakgrundsmusik. 6/10

Fockin bangin

An album that doesn't even live up to the title. Formulaic drumbeats and disinterested melodies abound here

That’s a no from me dawg

I do not agree even slightly that I had to hear this before I die.

maybe it was doing somethin when it came out but it did nothing for me today

I was really waiting for this album to end. Everything sounded the same and nothing went everywhere. The style just isn't for me at all. There was some good things that happened, but overall, this wasn't great. Actual Rating...1.5 Liked Songs: "Sutrix" , "Eclipse" , "OK" , "Light" , "Soni"

I just don’t like it

interesting concept but bad execution

The tabla stuff is pretty cool in this setting. I did fall asleep however.

I mean, it's an alright album for background music; it's a bit repetitive though. But yeah, an hour of mediocre Indian techno music just doesn't do it for me.

A weird one, this sounds like the background spiritual music to a self help vhs that speaks about your chakras and inner being. It definitely sounds like it was made by an Indian man who went to Japan. While weird, it's not terrible, and pretty soothing at points.

Interesting mix of jazz, orchestra, and other music from Asia and far flung cultures that got progressively tedious and boring after the halfway mark.

Mielenkiintoisia rytmejä, mutta ei oikein innostanut.

After the opening song I was dreading an hour of what that sounded like. However the rest of the album surprised me. I’ve never heard music sounding like this before. Some highlights like Butterfly. OK and Eclipse were fantastic blending Indian sitar with more electronic production was somewhat interesting. The closer, Vikram the Vampire possibly leaves the best for last with some amazing drumming. Don’t know if I’ll be back for a full album listen again

Gar bage

its fine. trying too hard to be mysterious or wordly or something idk lol

First Indian album I’ve listened to that I can tolerate

OK takes it a bit far. Some of it was nauseating...

Im not huge on hating things. I have the idea that alot of music is less bad overall and more just not for me. Sometimes though I have such a reaction that that idea falls apart. And this is one of those times. Its just so much not for me that it falls into the bad territory. And its not what you might assume from a midwest white guy. The Indian stylings are not at all what I have issue with. Its the god damn dnb stuff. The more and more drum and bass I hear the less and less I like it. So when you take a genre im more of less inexperienced with like Indian traditional music and just drag it through the mud that is dnb it just comes out worse than the sum of its parts. The never ending repetition of dnb can't be helped with he Indian chanting and interesting traditional drums or flutes. Its a slog from start to finish. And an hour of this is unbearable. I was looking for anything else to look at or any sort of distraction for my mind to make it through. Watching baseball scores was my savior. Nothing like a more generally accepted more boring thing to take away the bored edge of this record. I like baseball but I would assume the general person might see it that way. Just a bad time all around for me. I can see the merit of the Indian music but the dnb is hell on earth.

Not every idea needs to be acted upon

Cool instrumentals on the first two songs

Not what I like

super cool, good vibey beats

If you're any kind of electronic album of club origin and have a vice of being bit mundane and unevenful, the rockists of all kinds will downvote you to oblivion. Especially if you're south asian

Good background music and that's about it

It was ok.

It was OK

o god no

Not my cup of tea, certainly well made but ambient music all feels derivative of aphex twin, who I never actively choose to listen to

Off of the first song I knew this would at least be a 4 and the rest of the album held up, loved this pick.

World music with electro beat. No. No no no.

Different, but some of the songs were quite soothing and nice.

Kakva je ovo freaky psihodelija, baš uznemirujuće 😰 1/5, 1/10

Indian techno is always welcome but the rest is forgettable.

Where did THIS come from?? NEVER heard this one before. Bit corny on the spoken word intro (by today's standards). The singing and speaking are GRATING. Why are the DNB parts so short? Ooh but they're so fun when they get going. Hell yeah! Butterfly! Sutrix is simultaneously so cool but has some weird parts. Not a fan of the gloopy synth pitching up and down, but I love the percussion.

Haven't heard of him. I do appreciate the influence from India but I just don't think the songs here sounded very interesting. They were just kinda there 2/5

Not hitting but not bothersome, I guess.

Pretty interesting mix of eastern music with electronic. 3.5

I wish I never heard this

Weird one, but pretty good for working? Low 3

First bite, I don't fancy tabla or India singing tradition. When getting over that feeling I find this decent floating stuff but due to earlier mentioned reasons I can't rate this above 2.

#446 / 1089 Heard before? ❌ Revisit? ❌ Didn't know what to expect at all. I was expecting some drum'n bass or maybe jungle beats, but the whole jazzy world music vibe threw me off quite a bit. While not bad, it was not enough either D'nB nor world/folk and the gap between felt like a problem. Parts of the songs I did enjoy, but not one full song was satisfactory to me. Sturdy 2/5

aptly named

The electronic music of the 90s just doesn’t hold up most of the time but at least this was a unique listening experience ! Sexy Asian Brian Eno

I want to branch out and discover new-to-me sounds, but that means running into some duds along the way and this is a prime example of duddery. This comes off as someone having just gotten a new keyboard and wanting to see what it can do. Unfortunately this album does not live up to its modest title.

totally not OK.

Another electronic music project into the bin. I didn't even get all the way through this one.

This album is incredibly fun: tabla and dance beats, yes please! Will definitely listen to it again and again.

"experimental" pero falla en lograr algo más, el sonido es demasiado estereotípico de su época 2.8

I tried to give this sound a chance. I can't give this guy 1 star out of respect to his legacy in the UK underground south asian sound, but otherwise it just didn't do it for me.

Good in moderation

The song Light came on and the earnest rave piano transported me to the year 1999. I liked some of the more rhythmic bits but not enough. 2.5

Interesting and a bit strange, fun, okay then

The ethnic music part is actually interesting, keeps my attention. Then, the badly made EDM elements join in. Not great. Ultimately a disappointing listen.

Nicht mein Ding. In dem Genre mag ich andere Sachen deutlich lieber.

Interessante Mischung an Stilen, mir aber irgendwann "zu viel".

Definitely not my favorite, ok as background, couldn’t imagine listening to it again though.

I like it, I like the idea behind it but the album never really seems to advance, it's stuck on the same idea for an hour. It's a good idea but it feels like it's trying to coast on the power of the idea and it gets a little tiresome by the end. I believe you could continually reorder the track listing and get the same experience every time

That blend of DnB and South Asian instruments really worked for me. Superb beats and energy throughout. This album and my reaction to it is bewilderingly unexpected. Love love love.

This is on a par with lift music. This World Music fusion style has been done better in the past. I will stick with Transglobal Underground if I want this sort of stuff.

It’s nice and smoooooooth

Aggressively 90s (both the style of electronic music and the album cover) and intensely hypnotic/entrancing. Not the best thing I've ever heard, but really enjoyable overall. Guy apparently traveled all over the world to record the multi-ethnic vocal arrangements... sounds like a fun experience, ngl.

Not quite

Never heard of this artist, but I am always curious about earl 00's electronic artists. First tracks gives me more soundtrack/movie score vibes. Cool stuff.

shit ruined my day

Yikes

Didn't find it very entertaining - neither over- nor underwhelmed.

Never heard of the album, but after reading reviews was expecting a bit more from it.

Sublime. Just gorgeous sounds of Indian music - tabla and other instruments I can’t name - and ethereal voices. Singh’s triumph is to complement them with electronic beats, weaving a tapestry that works rather than feels crudely tacked on. It’s a high 4. The album ran a bit long and like (almost) all EDM, some of the bits became too repetitive. But inducing trance-like states is inherent in much of the Eastern music he is reveling in here, so the marriage feels natural.

Literally said, “oh no” when the first “the world is sound” started up in “Traveller” because I was pretty certain where things were going, and well, the album proved me right. I wish this was not one of the few examples of Indian music on this list because it’s so bad. Even for Indian electronica I feel like there has to be better. I started skipping through songs, which I try not to do, but it just got to be too much at one point. “Light” was the only track I didn’t hate, but not strong enough to get the album a higher rating from me.

Favorite track(s): Butterfly, Sutrix Without all the spoken word passages, this might've eked out another star.

Good ideas, not a great execution.

Beautiful music. Excellent musicians.

funny album

Review: This album was not good at all. I have no clue how this made it into the book. I understand that the sound may have been influential for the time and that the production is good but there is just so much stupid stuff that ruins the songs. This is the first album I have ever listened to where I did not add a single song to my playlist. Even the best song Traveller was good and then he decided to loop the beat for 30 more years before ending the song.

sutrix :( OK :) Soni :(

Mostly just fine? I wanted to like it more than I did. Was a cool concept, and not bad, just more boring than I expected. "Eclipse" and "OK" were the standouts for me

Electronica, indian classical, exotica.

Indian Massive Attack was more than I could handle today. This late '90's international electronic never really did it for me. It sounds like music that would be in some 3D videogame or the credits of a bad movie from the era.

So incredibly boring. Songs long for the sake of being long. Very transy and airy, but not in a good way.

It feels like an album more interested in impressing you with technical prowess, uniqueness and artistry (whatever that means) than in creating an enjoyable musical experience. This guy is on a mission and does not care if you're along for the ride or not. That's fine. I've listened to stuff like that in the past and will likely do so again. It certainly makes for an interesting listen. Overall, pretty good.

An awful combination of pretentiousness and sheer boredom. Maybe it’s my Eurocentric ignorance but I didn’t feel the non western elements worked at all with the electronica. Flour, eggs and sugar can make a cake, but that doesn’t mean every random combination of flour, eggs and sugar makes a cake, or even anything palatable. This album was just chucking random elements together and cajoling the critics into professing their admiration of it because it’s different. I wager very few listened to it more than twice, they might have admired it but no one truly loves music like this.

Good album. Nice blend of Indian influences and gentle drum and bass. Not the strongest 4 but I will give a 4 nevertheless.

Interesting to compare and contrast to Cornershop, the slightly earlier Anglo-Indian entry - this is less poppy, less irreverent - while being somehow more rooted in both Indian classicalism and clubland. Could detect some influences - Leftfield in Mombasstic and he out Bjorks Bjork with the way the strings drop in from nowhere in the opener - but this has clearly also influenced others through the years - including the most recent Gorillaz. In short, a very good reflection of eclectic Britain in the 90s.

I really can’t figure out why this passed me by upon release. I was aware of it, it got critical acclaim, it fell squarely into what I was broadly listening to. Strange. Anyway, I loved the fusion of influences and the experimentation it gave birth to. It was both a fun and interesting listen. I guess it’s never too late to catch up!

The more traditional singular moments are what really resonate, which for me means the originality & fusion that is undoubtedly there doesn’t really gel the various elements (clearly I know so much more about music than the Mercury Prize panel). An album & artist that had passed me by, so that in itself is welcome.

Very unique. Glad this was on the list better than some of the 70s stuff

This album sent me down a rabbit hole of similar artists. Fun.

Mix of Indian music and electronica / drum and bass. On the plus side, it was very different from most of the other albums on this list. On the negative side, I found it extremely boring and difficult to get through. The slow, relaxing flute clashes with the fast tempo, polyrhythmic drums and I'm left wondering what situation I could be in where I'd want to listen to this.

If I had a nickel for every middling turn-of-the-century electronica album I’ve gotten that fuses underground western dance music with traditional Indian samples and melodies, I’d have two nickels, which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it happened twice!

C'mon guys, what is this.

This won the Mercury Prize in 1999? Over, among other albums, Beth Orton’s Central Reservation? Oh dear. I wish there were more tabla and sitar—and less, erm, Windham Hill (which largely did it better). Mostly inoffensive. Nowhere near essential, however. 2.5?

WHATS HAPPENING HOLY SHIT This guy gets it

Sounds like something Derek Zoolander would be super into

I prefer the new Gorillaz album 2/5

An album that had totally passed me by. It's novel and not unpleasant, but once I'd heard a couple of tracks I'd got the idea more than enough. The shine really comes off as the album goes on, and it's not something I think I'll revisit. Maybe you had to be there!

More than "OK", this is wonderful! The first 3 tracks and the last are my favourites but having heard it through a few times now (and with headphones on it's even better), track 6 - Disser/Point.Mento.B - almost has me in tears. I just wish it wasn't so short (never satisfied!). I've heard plenty of pure Indian/Asian music which I can happily live without but the intertwining with other styles/instruments/moods here just does something and sounds exciting for me. In fact I am still trying to understand why I know that I find it difficult to listen to a lot of the individual genres on their own (dance, drum & bass, Asian beats of varying types...) but put them together and I can't get enough. I'm also pleased that persevering with a few hours of dross in recent days has its benefits if something like this can be discovered. Perhaps I should start paying attention to the Mercury prize again too if this sort of stuff appears. It passed me by at the time. Just ordered the CD of this anyway because I'm one of the few who still prefers to hear good things that way.

First track is awful and not a great set up for the album. I can imagine this is the sort of music being listened to at a grubby festival on the outskirts of Bristol - not somewhere I would ever want to be. Butterfly and Sutrix, OK are okay but not good enough to justify the dullness of the rest of it

Never really got the hype with this (like MOST mercury winners I think), it's basically 2 good tracks ('Butterfly' is a true 5/5 banger) and then a load of nonsense after it. The drum programming is good but all the synths sound like they were made in Magix Music Maker (is that still a thing?). This isn't a hindsight thing either, btw, it sounded lame even at the time.

ehh 2

Best songs: Butterfly, Mombasstic and Light. Interesting mix of styles, but sometimes it gets a bit messy.

This isn't a genre I typically listen to, but I have to admit that this album was far better than "OK" to me.

Better than OK, I would say it's pretty good. Favorite Track: Soni

Väldigt unikt och ändå coolt men ser mig inte lyssna jättemycket på detta

Very cool blend of world music and various forms of electronic.

I can't spare myself from joining the club: this was OK. You know what, this was even a bit more than ok. I felt inside an ambitious movie score. I felt the grandfullness of my morining commute and the amazement of my early office day. Elecro-futurism mixed with eastern sounds is working wonders. This is meant to be flown through. To be lived in. I liked it a lot.

Loved this album when it came out. Not aure he’s done anything as good since but this is the mutts nuts. Who doesnt like classical Indian trip hop?

Etninen drumnbeissi oli vähä liian etnistä minulle. Ei aivan totaalisen mid, mutta vähä mid.

OK

mid 2.5. Apesar de não ser um desastre, me soa muito pedante com todo o Worldbeat, espiritualidade vazia e produções pouco interessantes. Essa mania de utilizar samples asiáticos na eletrônica britânica dos anos 90 foi muito mais bem implementada em outros projetos.

not a fan

This project will drop you in the middle of nowhere. I never thought I’d to listen to Indian inspired electronica and enjoy it.

Better in concept than reality, a creative record that merges traditional Indian musical styles with modern electronica / big beat. There are a few moments (the albums starts strong), but too much is ponderous and overlong. That said, its worth hearing, and worth having on the list for originality if nothing else.

Bajo

A very unusual album that is somewhere between electronic dance music and Indian restaurant. Some of it I didn't mind and almost quite liked, but there was too much that didn't hit for me here, and the album was over an hour.

Definitely unique. Approximately named album, I guess.

I think this is really bad. One star...

Not OK

OK, Dimery. That one was pretty cool. Electronic/tabla crossover with widely varied world influences? It's hard to gauge what that'll sound like from the description but it works. The leaning is definitely clubby -- this calls to mind a sweaty dancefloor -- but it's excellent. It's a hard one to describe in detail. It's absolutely filled with sounds and textures. Some are from the physical world and some are digital inventions. There's no distinction, here. 28 years later (I write in 2026), I hear those sorts of musical synthesis more and more as globalism bounces ideas back and forth between cultural centres but in 1998, this was remarkable (though England was certainly a longstanding centre for both Indian immigration and electronic music). A good listen. Not one I'll return to but that's genre-related. Not my cup of tea for regular listening but a refreshingly modern-sounding dance record with a cosmopolitan heart. 4/5

I was overdue for an album I wouldn’t have found on my own. It’s a timely listen after the recent release of Gorillaz’ The Mountain. I’d imagine he also set a precedent for M.I.A. Not really what I’m feeling at the moment; I need something more upbeat than the kind of album they used to have at those kiosks in Target. Definitely an admirable effort, though. Perfect turn of the millennium aesthetic, especially the cover art.

probably my second favorite album starting with OK. I'm always down to listen to jungle-adjacent music.

Interesting polyrhythms but something unsettling about Indian vocals and strange off key intonations.

's fine

This was alright

interesting, would need to listen to it in a different context to develop a stronger opinion

thank you Mr. Singh

You know that character Tim Robbins plays in High Fidelity? Ian? The guy with the ponytail. This is exactly the kind of music he listens to.

This was interesting and trippy

You got your raga in my techno You got your techno in my raga

This is ok but not something I would want to listen to on the regular.

Gear: 64 Audio Duo Artwork: 🐘💻🟦 Production: 😌👂🧈 Music: 🕌🚀🌌 Rating: 🆗🆗/5

This was a pleasant surprise, a really tasteful combination of techno, western classical music, and Indian classical music. A really good chill listen to have on when I'm working.

Certified bakgrunnsmusikk. Men var helt kurant om ikke annet. Svak 3. EDIT: Vokste på meg. Noen av låtene mot slutten var sånn typisk whack rar musikk jeg liker å høre på (Soni spesifikt). Oppgradert til svak 4, kommer til å høre på igjen.

Behagelig og interessant på samme tid. God arbeidsmusikk. Passelig variert. Meditativt.

Not really my thing but perfectly alright

If I had to pick one Asian Underground album, I’d take 𝘖𝘒 over 𝘉𝘦𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘥 𝘚𝘬𝘪𝘯 by Nitin Sawhney without much hesitation. Talvin Singh does a better job of blending electronic music and Indian influences into something that feels distinctive and genuinely his own. The album has a strong atmosphere and a sense of curiosity that keeps it interesting even when it drifts. I’m still not completely convinced by the genre as a whole, but this is the first album from that scene that made me understand the appeal a little more. It still isn’t a genre I’d seek out very often, but this is one of the better examples I’ve heard.

I liked the cultural music, I didn’t really enjoy the rave music.

actually genuinely put me to sleep

muy extravagante pero no esta mal

Not really my jam, man.

Not really something I'd listen to and so I found it just okay

Not for me.

I have a few TS tunes in my library, from his contributions to the Buddah Bar and Asian Underground collections But aside from Butterfly I dont hear much that hits in the same way on this album

Listens: 1.5 Standout Tracks: None I like the style of music, or at least the instruments (or sounds if its electronic, not sure). South Asian musical influences are interesting to me, but god damn I could not get though this album a second time. I just couldn't bring myself to spend an hour of my time listening to this when I could be listening to something I know I will enjoy. I ended up listening to the Grateful Dead instead. 1.5, but I will round up.

Glad it’s over. That’s an hour and 1 minute I wish I was listening to something else

A lot of these songs sound like what you'd hear while getting a massage. It's somewhat relaxing, but not an album I'd say someone MUST listen to.

Futuristic, sounds very cool, my kind of vibe!

Eastern rhythms were interesting but the repetitive electronica elements really rubbed me the wrong way.

Did not expect this to like this.

"OK" is right a lot of pretty lightweight atmospheric dnb that goes right in one ear and out the other on this, but the highlights are strong. this album is at its most interesting when it's leaning hard into the use of traditional instruments, which is why i think Butterfly is THE song to listen to off this one. listen to those tablas! ryuichi sakamoto (my goat) is also featured on this, contributing some flute parts, and apparently sent them to the studio via email from new york — waow so futuristic! talvin singh himself seems way more interesting than this album so i might have to look more into his work. when i was reading about this i unearthed lots of fun stuff: he toured with siouxsie and the banshees, was part of massive attack's live band, he arranged the strings on bjork's debut... he's had quite a career.

It was so easy to listen to that it felt like it kind of came and went without leaving too much impact. When I would stop to listen at any given point I really appreciated what I was hearing, the places the music's sounds came from and the skill of the craft on display. Perfectly enjoyable listen. But I just don't think it's going to leave a lasting impact on me either.

I listened to this album on an uneventful morning, making the long drive to work and trying to figure out the logistics of my day: getting home to feed my parents' dog, visiting my partner, and making it back to work for overtime in as little time as possible. Another absolutely blindsiding experience from this list, Talvin Singh delivers such a unique blend of Indian instrumentation with electronic production which immediately captured my attention. These songs tend to feel like grand adventures, traversing from one soundscape to the next. Manic drum beats match up with intricate string performances, blending these two worlds to such incredible results. Many of these songs even got me to enjoy electronic genres I hardly ever click with, like drum & bass. These ever-shifting drums provide a unique bedrock for each new combination of instruments and sounds, including the sudden implementation of some great horn licks and runs. All of this musical diversity comes together to create a very introspective and reflective tone, making for one of the most captivating and singular musical projects I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing. Highlights: Traveller, Butterfly, Sutrix, Mombasstic, Decca, Eclipse, OK, Light, Soni

#950. Turns out, it's not OK. 2/5: less than OK

I rate this according to the number of songs I made it through.

Very cool find. I love the layered and textured music. It’s a bit background music, but I definitely will listen again when I’m in the mood to chill.

Well I see where he was going with this, a blend of Indian music and European dance music. It didn't work for me, but it wasn't awful - some bits were actually okay, others were a bit cringe. I feel it's a 2.5, but I'm marking it down to two stars, as it's definitely not worthy of three.

Butterfly

Not it for me, just very weird, but not in a good way.

The music seems to always be in a rush to get to the next thing, which makes it doubly surprising that it's all so boring.

Listening session: may 19th, while travelling home by train Listened to before: no Thoughts: I understand the concept but don’t like the execution at all, so I hope I won’t have to listen to this again Favourite track: Sutrix

Not okay

no thanks

Was expecting some tacky stuff when I realized its gonna be a South Asian music x Electronic crossover, which one can tell by just looking at the most 2000s ass electronic cover with a little Ganesha for good measure. Thought it might have just been thrown on the list just for that British colonization guilt clearly operating here considering how much Hindustani music is on this list (and it probably still was) - I think there's as many Indian classical music albums as Jazz. Was quite pleasantly surprised however - Singh is clearly extremely well versed in both genres truly searches in depth between the two. Problem is that I'm not very well versed in electronic and even less so in South Asian music so it's hard to get a read, especially after just a listen. Could see myself coming back to it though. 3.5

You’re so right king the world IS sound.

This was really cool! Could def see myself revisiting this!

it's fine. interesting combination but i think it overstayed its welcome for me

LET'S GOOOOOOOOOO. dare i say biblical scenes have arisen this saturday. quick shoutout to the bass flo remix of butterfly. ryuichi sakamoto mentioned. is it yt uk music critic baby's second (see roni size) jungle album by proxy of winning the mercury prize? probably? is it still good? you fucking bet. is it elite all time jungle? ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯ (see decca for why). few things sound like it though 👾. 3.5-3.9.

Não gosto de eletronica

Kinda vibed with it but was kinda long. The title track was great though!

Oh man, this one caught me by surprise. I’m not sure the album itself is as significant as the feelings it evoked for me: from the opening track with its repeated intonation of “The World is Sound” it makes me think of a hopefulness for peace and a global multiculturalism and coexistence that existed in the 90s, that in retrospect feels naive, but that seems entirely absent and wanting now, in a world succumbing to small-minded nationalisms. This album is a mix of the skittering breakbeats of drum n bass and Asian (primarily Indian) music. So you get these interesting consonances with the down pitched bassline on the title track recalling the timbre of the baya tabla; elsewhere parallels are drawn between the drones of Indian classical music and synth pads. It doesn’t all work for me. Sometimes it’s all a little too new agey for me, particularly towards the end of the album; I think the album also runs the problem that a lot of albums of this type run, which is that in trying to reconcile music with its origins on the dancefloor with the listening structure of an album it doesn’t quite achieve either.

2.5 - ok, slightly more interesting than regular electronica

Great mood music

OK by Talvin Singh was an interesting surprise for me. I’ve never been a big fan of electronic music, and on my first listen I actually skipped through a number of tracks without really connecting to it. After going back and listening from start to finish a couple of times, though, the album started to click. The blend of Indian instrumentation and rhythms with electronic production is really unique and creates a hypnotic atmosphere that worked especially well as background music while working. Even if not every track stuck with me, I appreciated the creativity and the change of pace from what I normally listen to. I’m still not sure if it’s an album I’ll regularly return to or actively seek out again, but I’m glad I gave it another chance.

This was genuinely such a treat to listen too. It has a really unique and intriguing sound. I'm already a fan of Indian Classical, so adding on the more experimental elements really made this stand out. Not every song is a winner, but the overall vibe is immaculate. Favorite Track - Butterfly Least Favorite Track - OK ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

very interesting!

Most definitely not for me.

Talvin Singh - OK - 3/5 I’m a huge fan of Eastern instruments showing up in Western music, so this was already working in my favor. It was pretty cool hearing that kind of fusion with electronica, because it gave the album a different feel than just a straight up electronic record. There’s a lot of atmosphere on here, and the mix of sounds kept it interesting. That said, I wasn’t blown away by it either. I liked the idea of it as much as the actual album, maybe more. Still, I’ve got a lot of respect for what it was trying to do, and when the blend of Eastern music and electronic beats came together, it sounded really good. Was really hoping to get some Slayer or some other kind of death metal since this is album #666

Fascinante. Mescla audaciosa de DnB contemporâneo com instrumentalização indiana clássica, e outras variedades de estilos e instrumentos do sudeste asiático. O resultado final é, no mínimo, intrigante. Aquele encontro de ocidente e oriente. Bem, isso são as expressões gerais. Eu gosto muito de música eletrônica ali da virada do milênio, é uma sonoridade que faz cócegas no meu cérebro neuro divertido. A comunicação entre o presente e o passado é legal, criativa. Não tenho muito o que reclamar, a não ser pela duração exagerada do álbum. Nem sempre ele mantém o mesmo entusiasmo, mas tudo bem. Ainda foi uma boa experiência ter ouvido este disco. Boa inclusão na lista. 3.5

Es raro, es lindo.

Un poco shitero

This is the kind of music that gets played at lunchtime in a beachfront bar in Goa or Phuket frequented by Russian tourists with plastic surgery and translucent white shirts. Four stars.

Nah

It is not OK.

Unctuous

It wasn't absolutely awful all the time but this feels like what one stars should be used for

This was alright, some parts of it were fun to listen to in the background, others were sort of cringey and skippable. Overall a 3 but not something I'll come back to

Not a great opener. It got better, but was too squared-off to keep me interested. Toward the end of the album, it started to remind me of Ozric Tentacles, but not as good. 3 stars.

OK is definitely a really interesting album. Singh apparently spent nine months of travelling the world to make this album and it shows here as there are plenty of Asian music elements combined with the typical jungle/drum and bass style of music. I can definitely appreciate this album for how well it combines both styles of music and by doing that, it really stands out from the sea of other electronic albums released in the late 1990s. My main issue with this album though is that at many points, it feels like it is just dragging on and on. I definitely feel like if some of these songs got cut down a bit, i would like it more but as it stands, its a cool little curiosity from the 90s. Best Song: Sutrix Worst Song: Light

Feels like something out of tron, dune, or cyberpunk. Kinda enjoyable but has a JK Rowling Dystopian vibe and I dont enjoy that much

Really unique old house.

the first 2 thirds or three quarters of this is a five star album. this is exactly the kinda stuff I wanted to find through this challenge

P good when you're taking a sauna

Pretty annoying most of the time

Bramphex Twin.

I listened to this while making hummus and it was kind of a vibe, but then it continued for another hour. A bit too much Indian weirdo stuff for me

me 450 albums into this project: "the world... is sound"

Not ok. 90 seconds into track 1 and I know what the rest is going to sound like.

This was one of those albums that annoyed me more and more as the album went on. At first I thought this was a cool sitar album, but then I checked the year and realized that this was just another god awful 90s proto-EDM album that plagues this list.

Electronica at its worst.

Interesting, but the best bits sounded like Sgt Pepper’s outtakes.

Nice

This was the definition of atrocious crimes against humanity. It would have been decent, if he wasn’t going like “Olabisi Ala Juju skeid 🗣️🤮😭.” I came to the conclusion that the only people who would seek this out would be people who are trying to get high in India. 1.9/5 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮.

3 stars

The British electronica albums will continue until morale improves

i haven’t heard this before. this might be my favorite album of all time. this is fucking awesome. yea this was like made for me. i loved this.

Turns out I’m not a fan of electronica in any culture. At least it’s consistent.

An album of “artsy” music. It’s not bad and I’d actually categorize it as creative, but it’s not something you’ll ever hear on the radio.

It’s the usual background music for the tantric lovemaking session at Sting’s place … until the alien spacecraft lands in the backyard.

I feel lied to, this was most certainly NOT ok.

Honestly, does nothing for me. Can't even see myself dancing to it. Type of electronic music that feels kinda useless IMO (not dancy, not really listenable by itself).

An atmospheric drum and bass album in which the real protagonists are the Asiatic music elements, rather than the actual electronics. This might sound interesting in paper, but it really isn't. For an supposed to be atmospheric project, it isn't really immersive. The synths and electronics are quite bland, and the Jungle aspect is not that chaotic, even though the approach is quite interesting, as it is a combination of programmed drums with actual tabla playing (tabla being a pair of hand drums used in some Asian regions). It could be argue that the Indian inspired sound may bring a sense of spirituality or transcendence, but I also think it is lacking in those aspects, at least in general, because the first tracks can be quite effective in that regard, specially "Traveler", the intro, which has a nice flute section that is followed up by some wonderful and strong strings, While the main influence of this album is the Indian folk music, there is an actual song that changes roots and uses Japanese folk instead. That song is "O.K." and I think it is a fun song and brings a nice change. Overall, this album is kind of mediocre. I don't think I was truly bored at any time, but neither I was fascinated, as I said, there is a important absence of an immersive aspect. It may be forgettable, but at least it is tolerable.

Concept is there, but it isn’t capitalized on. Feels like another included because it’s a mercury prize winner and not on any other merit. It’s fine it’s just not anything I’m coming back to.

talvin singh salvame de las garras del cosnumismo

Woob si fuese indio

Cool rudimentary world electronic music. Nothing incredible though

Kinda interesting at times but largely background music

interesante... nunca hubiera llegado a esto de otra manera, menos escuchar el disco completo

Nice

There's some really good tracks here. Unfortunately they've also cut in some 90's electro pop synth overlays. Overall a decent listen. They've tried to integrate a lot of different sounds on the back of the Indian instruments. Sometimes it works, others less so.

neat

Lowkey hypnotic.

2,5

Deeply boring and I hate electronica

Not my groove. ★★

OK

Enjoyed this a lot - glad to have been introduced to it by this challenge

I'm giving this album a 2 because it does do a great job of creating a "sonic landscape" which is apparently the goal. It does not make sense to me. The techno part works, the classical indian part works, I do not like them together. I think they could work together, I just don't think this is the premier example of this type of music.

felt like a fever dream (maybe because i fell asleep while listening to it)

Nice album to listen to in the background while working. I feel like the creative use of drums and flute is stimulating my brain to work.

Sonic Dessert Level Music. I was way to sober to listen to it but even then I really enjoyed it. Nice mix of different elements of genres and cultures with an ethereal sound, almost transcending. If I could give it 3.5/5 I would but sadly I can't. Will most likely revisit it someday.

N/s n/s :)

Está ok

Apparently if you add some interesting instrumentals I don’t hate electronica. Still too long and occasionally repetitive but good chill and didn’t make me angry

⭐⭐ SPA-techno med stor dos orientaliska inslag och instrument. Lyssnade på den när jag jobbade i trädgåden, ganska avkopplande. Kommer jag lyssna på det igen? Tveksamt så det blir en 2a. Bäst, kaske Vikram the vampire.

There has been some bad stuff on here. Then there is this. A whole new category of bad. Beyond the ygtbfkm and into WTFITTTSBR?? 0.000

OK by name, OK by nature. It was fine, but I'll probably never listen to it again.

I'm glad I listened to it, because I never would have heard it otherwise. I didn't really enjoy it though. I was hoping that it would be a lot darker based on the "Vikrum the Vampire" song title, but it wasn't really that dark.

Definitely some really great instrumentation here. I’m happy it’s on the list, but I’ll never come back to it.

not my genre

Had a good review but it got wiped halfway through. To catch up - never heard of album or group. Very 90s electronic which is not necessarily my favorite but there is definitely some cool production and sounds so far. Cool horns and flutes. Mostly bullshit lyrics so far but I think O.K. The vocals work really well. This is good working music. These songs are super long tho which I don’t really like for the most part. Really cool flute again on light. I like the piano riff too. This song is fun. I really liked d’user. I thought that beat was really really cool. Soni is fine. Nothing really special. Cool beat but that’s it for most of it. I like the poem type deal at the end. Vikram is a cool song, good way to end it. Again, this is good wiring music. A lot of cool sounds put together, nothing substantial with the lyrics. Overall an enjoyable listen but won’t ever listen again. 3.2 stars.

Ikke min kopp te. Høres tidvis ut som oppvarming før øving.

A very interesting mix of traditional Indian music and techno. It was a great listen but I don't know that I'll come back to it.

I skipped a few days only to be greeted by more electronica.

i wish i had a copy of the book to see the reasoning behind some album inclusions. i enjoy the "world" music inclusions on the list, if only for exposure - some are flat out incredible (fela kuti), but this seems to be an odd inclusion. world music + techno beats does not an interesting album make.

This is way too instrumental for me. Couldn’t get past track 1.

I found that a single stray thought in my head was enough to distract me from this music immediately and irreversibly for minutes or even hours. I had a busy couple weeks, now I am in a 17 album hole. Thanks Talvin...

I didn’t like it but at least it was something different.

I'm deeply biased. Its pretty good

I don't even know if this album is OK.

this was proper dead

I wasn't sure who Talvin Singh was at first glance. Upon further reading, I noticed that he started his career as a session musician, having played on tabla for the likes of Siouxsie and the Banshees and Björk. In fact, he's worked alongside other producers and DJs in an underground movement that focused on fusing South Asian music and instrumentation with electronica. Thus, I'm not surprised Talvin took that next step and released a solo debut. With that said, how does OK hold up? Well, I will say this is a very eclectic mixture of Indian classical instrumentation and drum 'n' bass electronic music. It definitely fits within the notion of "atmospheric" electronica that I've come to appreciate with my album journey. The blending of live and digitized elements can seem mesmerizing at times, as if the world were a canvas that Talvin painted on with his compositions. From the sprawling 11-minute epic of "Traveller", to the breakbeat flute and sitar pairing of "Butterfly", to the hypnotic vocal-led trance of "Sutrix", to the tingling jazz fusion with the liquid drops of "Mombasstic", to the meditation on "Eclipse" as the tabla and electronic beats seemingly become one, to the clash of the geisha choir, wailing guitar and chopped-up beats on the title track, there are some rich and diverse soundscapes on display here. That said, I do not consider this album to be perfect. I didn't feel that "Decca" was a meaningful interlude to open "Eclipse", and "Disser/Point.Mento.B" also felt similarly underdeveloped. Conversely, I felt that the ending of "Veckram the Vampire" was drawn out longer than it needed to. Towards the end of the record, the momentum significantly slowed down and wasn't as engaging to me as the first roughly two-thirds were. Still, I cannot deny how genuinely intrigued I was by OK as a melting pot of world music and electronica. Talvin Singh knew how to take his understanding of Indian classical music and transform it for a new generation.

Interesting combination of Indian and electronic but the delivery is kinda just boring 90s ambient stuff.

What a waste of time.

I could tell by the year and album cover how this was going to go. This was pretty un impressive. Predictable and boring. Not required listening.