It was a quiet revolution when SHAKTI came into existence in 1974 to draw on John McLaughlin’s experimental and spiritual journey with Miles Davis, MAHAVISHNU ORCHESTRA and Carlos Santana and Zakir Hussain’s Eastern sensibilities that allowed these artists to make an intrepid foray into a fusion-amplified world music which keeps on giving more than 45 years after the ensemble’s third, and last album “Natural Elements” failed to set the charts on fire. The group didn’t stop then and there, though, carrying on gracing various stages from time to time, occasionally as REMEMBER SHAKTI, yet nothing could surprise their fans more than the news of the band releasing a completely fresh record.
Scheduled for June 30th under the title “This Moment” and available for pre-order now on many online platforms, the platter marking the band’s 50th anniversary, finds guitarist McLaughlin and tabla player Hussain in the company of singer Shankar Mahadevan, violinist Ganesh Rajagopalan and percussionist Selvaganesh Vinayakram whom John gathered online in late 2021 with a prospect of bringing their soulful unity together and stitching a whole tapestry out of individual parts. The results, to be taken on stage soon, look like this:
This Moment
1. Shrini’s Dream
2. Bending The Rules
3. Karuna
4. Mohanam
5. Giriraj Sudha
6. Las Palmas
7. Changay Naino
8. Sono Mama
