Eishan Ensemble’s second record, Afternoon Tea at Six – a colourful recording that accentuates the compositional growth of Iranian fusionist Hamed Sadeghi.
Musically inspired by the likes of Rabih Abou-Khalil, Anouar Brahem, Kayhan Kalhor, Ravi Shankar and more, Afternoon Tea at Six expands on the rich palette of Persian classical and Western contemporary influences established on the Ensemble’s first album, Nim Dong. Listeners will notice a slight departure from Sadeghi’s previous work – the compositions are more daring, the instrumentals bounce off each other like good friends in conversation, and the balance between Persian and jazz elements is fine-tuned to perfection.
“The record tells seven stories,” explains Sadeghi. “We drank a cup of Persian black tea before every rehearsal and tried to narrate the stories with a different texture. The idea of writing this album was to create a strong foundation where guest musicians can join and easily blend in. After forming Eishan Ensemble and playing with them for a few years, I discovered the great potential in this band and started writing music based on every musician’s character. Persian classical and western contemporary harmony is used to build melodies and phrases. We all have our sections where we improvise while everyone else is all ears listening in the background.”
As the first single from Afternoon Tea at Six, Signs is one shining example of the record’s complex and provoking nature. The opening drizzle of quickly plucked strings leads into a march of deep drumming, supplemented by horns and climbing vocals that guide the listener through a realm of dark nights and dusty winds. The musical elements interrupt each other, but never leave the song feeling jarred or disrupted. Rather, every oncoming step is a journey towards something much bigger, as if the numerous segments of Signs form a single, curious battalion of joyous instrumentation.
“Signs is a discussion between friends where everyone wants to have their say,” begins Sadeghi. “They don’t hesitate to interrupt and they passionately speak their heart out – they fight and disagree on things throughout the discussion, however there is a lot of love between them.”
I was inspired to write this piece when I read a poem from Rumi entitled Signs. It is the story of a hopeless person looking for their beloved while sun is rising from the east and the west every day. A story of confusion and assurance.”
Since the release of Nim Dong, the Eishan Ensemble has enjoyed high praise for their enigmatic live performances, going so far as to earn a four-star review from the Sydney Morning Herald for their careful blend of old-meets-new musicianship. Their performance at Sydney’s Fringe Festival 2019 earned them a well-deserved nomination for the Best Music Award, and Sadeghi has earned award nominations at Sydney Festival 2019 and Best Original Score with Michael Askill at the Sydney Theatre Awards 2019.
The next 12 months takes the Eishan Ensemble on a series of must-see performances as they embark on a national tour in June 2020, followed by a European tour in July/August 2020.
Eishan Ensemble’s second record, Afternoon Tea at Six, is available now via Art As Catharsis.
