Hooshere- Hooshere (Self Produced)

*** (Three Stars)

Like Zulal, Hooshere Bezdikian’s self titled/produced CD has been percolating for several years now in the New York/New Jersey Armenian scene. After a long and multi-tiered process of recording in both New York and Armenia, Hooshere is finally here-ready for mass consumption. A gifted musician since her youth, Hooshere has had classical and jazz vocal training especially throughout here collegiate years. On this disc, she sticks to popular Armenian folk songs and a few original mixed language (English/Armenian) original compositions. While the originals don’t work on this album, the Armenian folk songs do. And very much so. Hooshere made an artistic tactical gamble by taking her amped up trance/new age/R&B sounding finished album and taking it to Armenia to add some more earthy Armenian sounds such as the duduk, kemantcha, blul, and dhol to the mix. The result is a near perfect contemporary world music album that represents the Armenian song to a potentially wide ranging audience. Today’s general world music buying public will fawn over this album as I did the first time I heard it. Hooshere’s voice is strong and versatile with a diva’s attitude that is required for this type of musical material. There are several moments when this album is crackling with the type of raw energy that is rare in today’s Armenian music scene. They occur in “Eem Anush Davigh” and “ Zeenvoree Mor Yerkuh”. Other sublime moments occur in the opening drug hazed track of “Kele Lao” and the classical “Cilicia”. Hooshere possesses that rare combination of deep feeling and understanding for her musical heritage while bringing some serious skill to the table. Kudos to the smart keyboard programming and bass playing on this eye-opening album.

Mal Barsamian- One Take: (Self Produced)

** (Two Stars)

Even before I put this CD into my sound system, I could hear and predict exactly what was going to be on this disc. Mal Barsamian is one of the hardest working men in Armenian-American show business here on the East Coast. He is probably one of the more talented as well. Barsamian’s legend has grown as a gifted clarinet player, guitarist (Masters Degree in Guitar from New England Conservatory), and underrated oudist. If you have been to a “Kef” function in the last 10 years, you have seen and heard Mal Barsamian. Ah, but what to do with that talent on record is indeed another question. One Take is a great showcase for Barsamian’s wide ranging musical talents on different instruments. For example, on the curiously named “Hovivin Aghchigun Medley”, Mal plays the clarinet, oud, dumbeg, and guitar simultaneously overdubbed in the studio. During his solo, Barsamian reminds the listener of a young Khatchig Kazarian of Detroit snake charming his way though “the ride”. Other songs named “Aramite Medley” and “Aramite Special” has guest musicians join Barsamian through the same-old-same-old in terms of songs. (I think Armenian-American musicians have to start inventing new terms to counter the overused “Medley” and “Special” syndrome when naming songs.) The good news and bad news at once regarding One Take is that once you put it on you feel like you are at a picnic or “Kef” dance. You can smell the losh kebab at campgrounds or feel the burn of a vodka tonic with a slight twist of lime going down your throat at an overly crowded portable bar at a hotel with the music in the background. But, that’s a problem for Mal Barsamian because his talent should rise above the mediocre Armo/Turko/Arabo mish-mash of songs on this album and at the functions he performs at. But, alas, he does not. And thus, One Take only frustrates given Barsamian’s immense talent and is comfortably destined for the CD players of folks who have heard these songs one too many times. As the liner notes boast, “Mal has respect for the old traditions while pursuing new musical endeavors.” Here’s hoping we can hear those new musical endeavors on record at some point.