Spirit Voyage

Feet in the Soil vol 2 offers more celebrations of danceable energies centered in the earth. Following the success of the best-selling Feet in the Soil, larger and deeper drums join the didgeridoo this time around with a fresh palette of sounds setting the party swaying.

Drawing on inspirations from Aboriginal and African lifestyles, the music invites you to join the groove, kick off your shoes and get your feet in the soil!

Reviews

Occasionally the universe works in obvious ways, and an artist such as James Asher makes himself known with a release entitles Feet in the Soul on a label recognized for making "music for people on the path." The drummer/keyboardest then turns loose Tigers of the Raj, Tigers of the Remix, and Colors of Trance. I've enjoyed Asher's simple yet enticing balance of traditional instruments such as Indian percussion with his fun, danceable synthesizers. Indeed, I've seen colors while listening to his music, and the remix work would do well at any rave.

Now Asher jogs along with more Gaia-centric celebrations by foot. Mixed by Grahame Gerard, Feet in the Soil Volume 2 tramples with bigger and badder drums as well as didgeridoo, and utilizes Aboriginal and African themes. Chants, ebow guitar, taiko drums, and "wicked ginger biscuits" (I can only conjecture) keep the vibes motivating, such as in the "African Sun" and "Janjara" grooves. Asher and co. can chill too, with the languid "Royal Blue" and "Atlantean Chant." Song titles are engaging: "Camel Train," "Send in the Scribes" and my fav "Crocodile Feet."

Asher is a proponent of the use of what he calls "grooveboxes" - modern gizmos for sequencing and sampling. Far from being or rendering sounds sterile, these devices add to his fascinating complexity of rhythm and, um, sole (forgive me). BPMs are listed for the truly tempo-oriented.

- Stacy Meyn, Whole Life Times, May 2002

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James Asher has released several outstanding drumming-dance albums, including Feet in the Soil and Tigers of the Raj. Now, with Feet in the Soil 2, he's set to bar even higher. One of the biggest differences between Feet in the Soil and Feet in the Soil 2 is Asher's use on the more recent album of ashiko and standing ngoma drums as well as the taiko drum. These large, heavy drums create a deeper, more potent sound that resonates down to the bone. Rhythms clapping and chanting also create an earthly, dynamic tone.

Asher plays a long list of percussion instruments as well as keyboards, Sandeep Raval contributes more percussion, and other musicians add bass guitar, trumpet, sax, and didgeridoo. The ecstatic result is full of exuberant drumming and irresistible grooves. Feet in the Soil 2 is perfect for all kinds of movement, and the intensity varies enough to keep things interesting. For those who love to dance until they sweat, and then to keep dancing, Feet in the Soil 2 succeeds brilliantly.

- Steve Ryals, New Age Retailer Magazine

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On this sequel (with larger, deeper drums) to the best-selling original of the same name, percussionist Asher produces magic once again. Multitalented and several drum disciplines, including djembe, standing ngoma, and frame drum, Asher's bloodbeat rhythms are accompanied by a generous array of other percussion, as well as didjeridu, bass guitar, elbow and electric guitars, recorder, trumpet, saxophone, and an assortment of tribal vocalizations. Don't let the pop-ish first couple of minutes fool you; this album settles into some serious primal beats. arthur Hull's well chosen words, "rhythmical alchemy," perfectly describe Asher's work, leaving no better choice of words. As you relax into the music, let your body follow and dance to eternally fresh rhythms. Travel the sands of the dark continent, Polynesia, and Arabia; feel the pulse of human origins and the ever changing colors of evolution. Generous with cross-patterns and richly woven instrumentation, this album (which could also be classified World Contemporary) is a delight and an adventure that leaves you wanting more.

- TJE NAPRA Review.

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The body of work Asher has been developing over the years has been very well received by listeners. Earlier albums like Globalarium, Raising the Rhythms, Tigers of the Raj, and Feet in the Soil showed his ability to work in catchy melodies with extended percussive dance grooves. He has always used a combination of synthesizers, drum machined, guitars, bass and sax blended artfully with folk instruments like wood flutes, digeridoo, shakers and hand drums. His compositions get under your skin and inspire the urge to dance and get caught up in the flow of the sound until sometime later when you notice that the trance has drifted off at the end of the music. Feet in the Soil 2 picks up where it's predecessor left off, Kicking into gear with African tribal rhythms, Japanese taiko drums, wordless vocals and chants to heat up the grooves on "African Sun" and "Janjara". There are also mellow moments in the dreamy slow passages like "Atlantean Chant" or "Royal Blue." And the spirit is always lurking somewhere in the mix, so take a cue and enjoy the party when "Crocodile Feet" inspires you to get a move on.

- New Age Voice Magazine, DL

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Take the drums, add a DJ, Mix some voices...OH YES! ***** (Five Stars)

Reviewer: aurora_lyn from behind the violet sunset in Alaska

Hey, "Feet in the Soil" is my favorite James Asher CD, followed by "Tigers of the Raj". When New Earth came out with a "Tigers of the Raj-Remix" CD, I thought i'd give it a try. Well, I gotta admit that I didn't really like it much. This CD "Feet in the Soil volume 2", is another story entirely. The remixes here don't get too cluttered up with overdubbed "canned" sounds, and instead focus on what made "Feet in the Soil" so good to begin with---the MUSIC and the drums! The mixing on this CD is done by Grahame Gerard, and he has done a great job. The 64 track mix includes live music with some of the "canned" sounds, but concentrates on showcasing the "real" stuff. The rhythms are pure fun and very danceable. Adding the vocals and dubbing in the additional beats and sounds, such as digeridoo, make for a complete package. The mix is great and moves "Feet in the Soil 2" up into the dance-trance groove category! A real work of art!

- Lyn McNutt, Nightlight

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Following up one of the most influential world releases in world music is no small task, but James Asher definitely rose to the occasion with "Feet in the Soil 2"! By design, this music offers celebrations of danceable energies, and of African/Aborigional lifestyles. It's also about drum-centered music and rhythmic playing simply for pure enjoyment. The magic of this music is Asher's rhythmical alchemy that is derived from combining the instruments in ways that lay down deep grooves amidst trancey elements and percussive jams that reach into the earth for their basis. Asher plays all manner of drums, shakers, and keyboards. Long-time collaborator Miles Bould plays congas, bongos and djembe. Sandeep Raval plays from everything from tammy tamma and taiko drum to ashiko, djun djun, dholak and wicked ginger biscuits. Rory Baxter plays didg, an important part of the "Feet" sound, Mike Choi plays bass guitar, and Phil Thornton plays guitars, recorder and especially effective Ebow guitar. Trumpet and sax round out the sound. For James, adding larger and deeper drums, and combining the sounds of "grooveboxes" plus a greater range of sonic possibilities helped him expand the sound without losing the initial vision. Exotic v

James Asher has had a long and varied career in the music business--his first single was produced by Pete Townsend in 1979, and he went on to return the favor by playing drums on Pete's Empty Glass album. After writing and recording 23 albums of library music, as well as gaining a clutch of production credits, he has gone on to explore the wider horizons of world music, releasing a series of very well received albums. In 1990, his first commercial album release, The Great Wheel, reached number 13 in the Billboard New Age chart, staying there on and off for about two years. His second album, Globalarium, featured world artists such as Hossam Ramzy on Egyptian percussion and Joji Hirota on shakuhachi. The most recent, Feet in the Soil, is "an uplifting celebration of danceable energies centered in the earth," drawing inspiration from Aboriginal and African lifestyles, and has sold over 100,000 copies since its release last year.

Although James started his professional career as a drummer, he now considers keyboards his main instrument, albeit from a highly rhythmic standpoint. "I started learning violin when I was seven, and experimented with keyboards when I was 12. I always had a sense of self-expression on keyboard that I never had on violin, because nobody really taught me anything on keyboards, so it was wide open to interpretation. Playing drums has made me very rhythmically oriented. I always build things up from rhythm--that's my starting point."