★ Players SHEZ RAJA
DEEP ROOTS
The mighty Indojazzfunk bassist Shez Raja returns with his most ambitious album yet, Tales From The Punjab. We meet the maestro...
Interview: Mike Brooks, Joel McIver
Krystian Data
“The other musicians on the album told me, ‘This is completely new – this music has never been done before...’”
London-based songwriter and bassist Shez Raja made his name touring with Elephant Talk, Loka and MC Lyte before embarking on a session and solo career. His earlier records featured stellar musicians such as Wayne Krantz, Trilok Gurtu, Mike Stern and Randy Brecker, and his new album, Tales From The Punjab, continues to explore a rich musical and cultural range of inspirations.
The album, the result of Raja’s 2020 visit to Lahore in the Punjab in Pakistan, features a host of guests. These include bansuri flute player Ahsan Papu, sarangi player Zohaib Hassan, tabla maestro Kashif Ali Dani, singer Fiza Haider and cajon guru Qamar Abbas. If you’re not familiar with these instruments, or indeed how a bass guitar meshes with them, you’ve come to the right place – as the man himself is here to explain how it all fits.
Tell us about the inspirations behind the new album, Shez.
Back in early 2020, just before the pandemic, I went on an adventure, travelling around the Punjab. My dad’s Asian, and what I wanted to do was explore my Asian heritage as a musician. I’d only been there a handful of times in my adolescence, so a way to do this was to immerse myself in the music. It’s been incredibly inspiring.