''Dalai Beldiri'' is an album by the Tuvan trio

Yat-Kha Yat-Kha is a band from Tuva, led by vocalist/guitarist Albert Kuvezin. Their music is a mixture of Tuvan traditional music and rock, featuring Kuvezin's distinctive '' kargyraa'' throat singing style, the '' kanzat kargyraa''. Biography Yat-Kha ...

. It was released internationally in 1999. The album title translates as "the confluence of the seas." The band supported the album with a North American tour.

Production

The album was produced by

Lu Edmonds Robert David "Lu" Edmonds (born 9 September 1957) is an English rock and folk musician. He is currently, as of 2018, a vocalist and saz and cümbüş player in the Mekons and the lead guitarist for Public Image Limited. Edmonds reportedly p ...

. It mixed rock styles with

Tuvan throat singing Tuvan throat singing, the main technique of which is known as ''khoomei'' ( tyv, хөөмей, xöömej, mn, хөөмий; ᠬᠦᠭᠡᠮᠡᠢ, khöömii, russian: хоомей, Chinese: 呼麦, pinyin: ''hūmài''), includes a type of overt ...

. Among the instruments used were the

morin khuur The ''morin khuur'' ( mn, морин хуур, morin khuur), also known as the horsehead fiddle, is a traditional Mongolian bowed stringed instrument. It is one of the most important musical instruments of the Mongol people, and is considered ...

and bass shanzi. Albert Kuvezin, Aldyn-ool Sevek, and Zhenya Tkach'v sang on ''Dalai Beldiri''. Sevek employed the sygyt whistling style; Kuvezin sang bass. Kuvezin's guitar playing was influenced by Deep Purple,

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

, and Jimi Hendrix.

Critical reception

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' wrote that "most of the songs on ''Dalai Beldiri'' have traditional roots, but they have been rearranged by Kuvezin to combine Tuvan vocal styles and instruments in non-traditional ways with Western pop instruments added in discreet but helpful ways." The ''

Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network. Published s ...

'' called "Sodom i Gomora" "a masterpiece," writing that "Tkach'v's haunting voice takes the lead here—the vocal is low and hypnotic, reminiscent of Latin church chanting, with Kuvezin providing a deep background rumble." '' The Record'' determined that "Kuvezin's mixture of original and traditional Tuvan music includes some notable Japanese, aboriginal and 'worldbeat' influences that enlivens the music." The ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...

'' concluded that the trio "actually heightens the extraordinary sound of its music with tasteful, imaginative doses of Western drums, guitars and other electric instruments." '' Miami New Times'' praised "Charash Karaa", and advised: "Think of a Tibetan monk crooning Bacharach at a karaoke bar in Kabul, and you come within spitting distance of this wonderful and oddly touching slab of sheer testosterone."

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

wrote that the album "offers a dynamic take on traditional Tuvan instrumentals and vocalizations." ''

The Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday. As of Ma ...

'' deemed it the 10th best album of 1999. In 2008, ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

'' listed ''Dalai Beldiri'' as one of the 50 "Essential CDs from Around the World".

Track listing

References

{{reflist 1999 albums Throat singing