VAS
Offerings

Gentlemen, are you intrigued by the idea of a journey through winding, rugged paths rich in charm and mystery? A journey through ancestral sounds, hailing from distant lands, subtly adapted to modernity yet not at all denatured, at a respectful distance from the canons of Western Pop music; this is the proposal from VAS, a project active from 1995 to 2004, born from the meeting between Azam Ali, an Iranian singer expatriated to Los Angeles, and Greg Ellis, a musician with a varied background but primarily an ethnic percussionist. Azam is undoubtedly the soul and cornerstone of the project, and the musical proposal is deeply rooted in her personal history: born in Tehran but soon moved to India with her family, where she stayed until the age of 15 before arriving in California. It's therefore no coincidence that VAS's music is characterized by a profound syncretism of Persian and Indian elements, with references to Sufi poetry and music. Thanks to her skill as a multi-instrumentalist combined with an excellent vocal ability, Azam Ali has become a significant figure in the world music scene. After VAS, she embarked on a solo career, alongside founding the duo with which she is currently engaged, Niyaz, along with her husband Loga Ramin Torkian, and various collaborations, including one with Canadian Rhys Fulber as part of his Conjure One project, through which I got to know her.

A few warnings and indications, purely subjective: VAS should be approached with caution, much better if in carefully selected small doses. Their music is able to reach peaks of regal beauty, but unfortunately, in the album dimension, they never achieved a true peak, a powerful and magnetic masterpiece in all its episodes. This is a serious limitation for the long-range accessibility of their works, which inevitably suffer from a certain redundancy, not to mention the intrinsic characteristics of such a proposal: spiritual music, reaching upward, whose aura of mystery is further amplified by the use of the Farsi language. Curiosity, admiration, fascination, reverence, these are the inspired sensations, never empathy, never direct involvement; the human dimension is completely transcended, with all the emotional consequences that such a choice entails; consequences that are not "sweetened" in any way, which is undoubtedly a note of merit and determination in following a path. "Offerings" from 1998 is the second of the four albums produced by this duo during its relatively short existence, and perhaps the most accessible in its entirety along with the swan song "Feast Of Silence," but nonetheless, it still requires a lot of time, patience, and the right mental disposition.

The compositions, all lasting between six and ten minutes, are heavily focused on Azam's powerful and priestly voice, accompanied mainly by string instruments like the santoor, played by herself, and the percussion (tablas) of Greg Ellis, always at the forefront and creators of significant changes in tempo and atmosphere. The singing is mainly expressed in a semi-lyrical register, further accentuating the solemnity of the atmospheres, which can be appreciated especially in the wonderful "Roya", the most immediate episode of the album with its slow, chanting progress, marked by perfect instrumental harmonies in which strings and flutes fit perfectly into the delicate phrases of the two main actors. "Roya" is a perfect example of VAS's potential expressed in its fullness, and it is well complemented by many other valuable episodes; "Varuna", arpeggiated and subtly spectral, the surreal idyll of "The Promise", the fascinating minimalism (only voice and percussion) of "Mist Weaving", the Arabic-influenced "Wajad", characterized by the ancient and intense sound of the zurna, a Turkish variant of the oboe; here Azam temporarily abandons the role of singer, and the very few vocal lines of this semi-instrumental are entrusted precisely to the guest player of this particular instrument, Omar Faruk Tekbilek.

Episodes like the opening "Svarga", long, changing, and serpentine, and "A Garland Of Breath" with its elongated and lingering electronic intro that leads to a cadenced, procession-like rhythm represent an even more enigmatic and disembodied side of Azam Ali and Greg Ellis's music, the one that often takes a bit too much precedence at the expense of effectiveness and intensity. However, "Offerings" contains very few low points; one of these, "Leyli," still stands out for its almost flamenco-like arpeggio; given the origin of the Gypsies, it's not surprising, but it remains a pleasant note of color. In short, if you're interested in the genre and the project, I'd say that "Offerings" represents the best starting point, it almost reaches the status of a masterpiece, missing it by very little; referring again to the introduction, I'd say that VAS certainly deserve a "little journey" even if just out of simple curiosity, if only for the quality and originality of a proposal certainly outside the bounds of many. I hope I have been a good tour operator, and for those interested, my compliments and happy listening.