A Better Destiny

Following in the footsteps of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, his anointed successors, Rizwan-Muazzam Qawwali Group, really deliver the goods on their second album. Almost from the first bars, this burns with an almost incandescent heat, the singers bouncing off each other on vocal flights that take them higher and higher to the ecstatic state that's the goal of all qawwalis. The "party," or backing band, offers strong support on vocals, harmonium, and tablas — the production gives great resonance to the percussion — giving a springboard to the lead singers. As with all qawwali music, none of the pieces are short (only one clocks in at less than ten minutes), giving the singers a chance to develop their improvisational flights, which they do very well, having learned from the late master. Since Khan died they've been thrust more into the spotlight, and the amount of work and playing they've done since then shows. The whole group pushes each other harder than on their earlier disc and works together more closely, making for a union of music. It's perhaps too early to say whether they'll achieve the transcendental greatness of their mentor, but if they continue to improve at this rate, the chances have to be very good indeed.