In these days of the global village, the method of producing a world music album is to take disparate elements and mash them together. For example, Ekova combines American singer Dierdre Dubois (who makes up her own languages), Algerian oud (an African lute) master Mehdi Haddab, and Iranian percussionist Arach Khalatbari on an album titled Heaven's Dust. Then, to bring in the current European flavor, those results are reinterpreted on Soft Breeze & Tsunami Breaks by a handful of DJs. Crazy, isn't it? Well, reserve me a padded cell, because the results on this disc are quite pleasant.

By taking the organic originals and combining them with electronic tweaks, Ekova thrusts listeners into a realm which combines the distant past and the far future. On the Farmakit-remixed "Temoine", heady rhythms pulse underneath Dubois' chants, evoking images of sweating dancers surrounding a bonfire. The tracks blend and meld with one another, twisting your mind in upon itself until all that's left is the enchanting pulse of the music. Songs such as "Sister" sound like something that could transform a dance floor into an ancient ceremony with its combination of industrial guitar and tribal polyrhythms. Elsewhere, as on "Sabrendita," the effect owes more to dub with its spacey bong noises and deft scratching. Not all of the tracks work (the reggae "Todosim" falls a bit flat), but when they do, the results are marvelous. By riding the wave of techno-tribal music which is propelling artists like DJ Cheb I Sabbah to epiphanies, Ekova have made some otherworldly world music.