The Rain

Ghazal was a style of ancient love poems that originated in sixth-century Arabic culture before spreading along the Silk Road to South Asia in the 12th century. On their fourth album, the band Ghazal (featuring Kayhan Kalhor on the fiddle-like kamancheh and Shujaat Husain Khan on sitar and vocals, as well as guest Sandeep Das on tabla) make a similar connection, bridging traditional Indian (Khan) and Persian (Kalhor) music on these three long, thematically based pieces. “Fire” starts with a slow, droning section that inexorably builds to a frenzied crescendo before gentle conclusion. The slow-to-midtempo “Dawn” features the most melodic playing as well as singing. Ending this live concert recording on a high note, “Eternity” starts amiably with Khan and Kalhor soloing back and forth, ebbing and flowing as the musicians encourage each other to another blazing finale. There's a surprising density of the sound for much of this, projecting musical imagery as detailed as a Persian rug.