MIDIval PunditZ

The tabla-beats sound-clash of the South Asian diaspora is not the vital force it once was half a decade ago, but back on the subcontinent a next-wave movement is burgeoning and the Delhi-based duo MIDIval PunditZ is at the forefront of it. For their self-titled debut, DJs-turned-producers Gaurav Raina and Tapan Raj stick to the rhythms of India's new urbanity and rinse 'em out with that melodic fundamental of Hindustani music: the raag. There are a few excursions into chilled-out dub and trance, but the PunditZ's preferred tempo tends to be jungle-ist. Original breakbeat designs flow swiftly with the duo's choice mix of reverberated flutes, santurs, violins and other lyrical voices. The throb of tech-step bass coupled with a psychedelically-treated ghazal vocal on "Fabric" is the sound of a Desi-dance classic to come, while the dhol ensemble on "Bhangra Fever" delivers a festive rumble that the drum & bass from this side of the planet could learn from.