Prophesy Audio CD – Import, August 21, 2001

I bought this years ago and listened to it a couple times and didn't really care for it. Felt like it was too much "all over the map" and the talking lesson in between songs sounded a bit contrived. I planned on selling it on Ebay and then years later decided to play it again. I have played it about 25 times now in the past 3 weeks and I really dig it. There is a lot going on here musically and vocally, it is a major production. It must have taken many hours if not months or years to produce this album. I strongly recommend it for people who are musically mature enough to enjoy all types of music coming at you all in on one disc. Give it a chance, it does take some time. This is encompassing world music.

This CD contains some of the most unique eclectic variations of music from all around the world that I've heard in a long time. The album is a must have for those looking at innovational sounds ranging from India to Brazil, not to mention having the signature Nitin Sawhney feel to them. The songs all have a lot of passion and there's a good balance between electronic and others. All in all, this is a great buy for those into international music with a flair for light electronic.

This was one of the album I've always wanted to buy. Since I have tons of CDs I want to buy, it had been on my wish list for a long time, but I finally bought!!No regret! Instantly became my 5-rated album.

Brilliant album, came packed in good condition. Quality of the CD was perfect. I love Nitin Sawhney's music - need to get his latest album.

Perfect - exactly what I purchased

love this album ...meant to be listened to all the way through and I love every track ...reminds me of Moby though Sawhneys sound is his own

It's hard to figure out what British actor and musician Nitin Sawhney can't do. This accomplished artist has produced an album that is both thought-provoking and technically flawless. He combines various flavors of electronica with eastern chant and flamenco guitar. It is a brilliant and effective combination.I'm embarrassed to admit how I found out about this guy, but I'll write about it anyway. Two weeks ago, on a flight from Cincinnati to Portland, I listened to a "Delta Radio" show called Asian Travels. The host played Sawhney's piece "Acquired Dreams." It left such an impression on me that I knew I had to have it on CD. I Googled the show name upon getting home and figured out which track had so captivated me. In the process, I made my best acquisition in at least two or three years.The opening track, "Sunset," is one of the more "pop" sounding tracks, even as it combines an acid jazz beat with an eastern chant and a soul hook. But "Acquired Minds" is a huge highlight. This third track starts with a beautiful, airy chant, then adds a flat trip hop beat and an accompanying guitar loop, among other elements. The middle third of "Acquired" is a drum and bass explosion that somehow combines all of the before listed elements with strings and pan flute. The track closes with an acid jazz improvisation over the original trip hop beat. It's truly a brilliant effort.A later track, "Developed," features the voice of Nelson Mandela, saying "we are free to be free." The track before has the distant voice of Martin Luther King delivering his famous line "I have seen the promised land." These are wonderful moments.An amazing aspect of the album is Sawhney's courage in putting so many diverse styles on one record. He is so successful with the drum and bass sounds on a couple of tracks that he could have stuck to that style for the entire album. Instead, he gives us a taste of his virtuoso guitar on "Moonrise." He also gives us a lovely rendition of what sounds like an African chant on the ambient goody "Footsteps." "Ripping Out Tears" is a great rap about the fulfillment of destiny.Some of the criticism I have read of the album slams Sawhney for his "preachy" liner notes, which rail against the worship of technology. This is a ridiculous assertion. The liner notes are not a long screed, rather they take up all of one page. While it is true that the artist has benefited greatly from technology, his complaint is about the over reliance on it, not the technology itself.Sawhney sees technology as a way to bring people and culture together, but he worries about the disconnected nature of some technologies, such as television: "Someone will tell you 50,000 people died in India. Two seconds later you're watching a comedy," he writes.Nitin Sawhney is hardly the first to write and worry about the "desensitization" and the "simulated realities" brought on by technology, but unlike others, he has an answer: a thoughtful expression of sound that brings people together. On several levels Prophecy is a fascinating and important - - and highly underrated - - album for our time.

This disc is a prime piece of musicianship. None of the music is very aggressive, so you'd almost call it chill-out music. There's too much variation for that, though. The music ranges from simple guitar ballad to almost electronic violence, so it's not as ignorable as your average chill-disc-of-the-month. What keeps the album from becoming a bunch of world music gimmicks is Sawhney's overall vision. He is a great composer, and while the songs are very differently instrumented, they all share the same spirit. I'd give the music 5 stars.What makes this disc annoying is that Sawhney clearly has some socio-political statements to make. If he'd only contain that in the song lyrics I'd have no problems with it. However, he intersperses the songs with little bits of spoken (quoted) text, and after you've heard them twice you can do without them. Increasing the irritation factor is that the BBC news bit is ungrammatical, and the "street gutu" goes on for more than a minute. I'm subtracting a point from my rating.

A good CD but could do better - having much of NS music I find a lot of this "coasting" in places

I have well over 3000 cd'sand many very good underground chillout cd's. But this has to be my best cd. I cannot fault it. Nitin has an ability to use technology to suit his feelings. You can sense the delicacy with which he produces music. Highly considered and beautifully melodic I know that you will love this.

Great music if you like the genre

Beyond Skin was my first journey in to the world of Nitin Sawhney. Beyond skin was one of the most diverse unchatocharised albums I'd ever heard with a strong Asian fusion. For Prophesy despite the mixed reviews which have deffered me purchasing the album. I was not dissapointed and I have found Prophesy an even more mature international and political collaboration. Nitin Sawhnney's Prophesy takes you to sounds of crystal chilled lounge tracks to international trips which take you to New York rapping, to Iberian back street flameco strums to Indian symphonies and Australian Aboriginal sounds. Nitin Sawhney's Prophesy project despite being somewhat overproduced. My conclusion is a diverse masterpiece, which crosses world music with jazz, rap trip and hip hop.But don't keep the Prophesy experience to your self, spread it around.

theres a raw talent there in nitin sawhney but not so much on this c.d.