Badar Ali Khan
The Mixes (Baba)
by Scott Hefflon
Who knew the keening, warbling howl of spiritual music could be so hip and danceable? I don’t mean dancing like a loin-clothed savage in some insulting movie meant to remind Americans how vastly superior we are to all but God, I mean dancing as in, like, trendy clubs and stuff. For those who’ve seen Natural Born Killers (and most of you should’ve seen it many times and memorized selections), it was Badar Ali Khan‘s uncle, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (the Pavarotti of Pakistan), who caused much controversy by having his music played during overlapping scenes of graphic American street violence. He collaborated with Peter Gabriel on The Last Temptation of Christ soundtrack as well as releasing albums on Gabriel’s Real World label, and collaborated with Eddie Vedder for the Dead Man Walking soundtrack. Badar continues in his family’s tradition of bringing the Sufi devotional music called qawwai to the West, and The Mixes shows his versatility is not to be overshadowed by his uncle’s great achievements. With a rich, sometimes booming voice, Badar incorporates “old world” sounds and rhythms, along
(3278 Wilshire Blvd. #901 Los Angeles, CA 90010)