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DEWA BUDJANA "Zentuary" (2cd)

New studio album (double cd) by the iconic Balinese guitarist Dewa Budjana, featuring TONY LEVIN, GARY HUSBAND, JACK DEJOHNETTE with special guests TIM GARLAND, DANNY MARKOVICH, GUTHRIE GOVAN, SAAT SYAH, UBIET, RISA SARASWATI, CZECH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA.

All Compositions by Dewa Budjana.
Produced by Dewa Budjana for Museum Gitarku Bali.
Associated producer Leonardo Pavkovic for MoonJune Music/MoonJune Asia.
Executive producer Bagus WIjaya Santosa.

Steve Vai's Favored Nations label, this time in association with MoonJune Music, continues its long hit streak of discovering and presenting great new six-string talents from across the globe, with the release of the Indonesian jazz and rock guitar icon, Dewa Budjana's sizzling double studio album "Zentuary", his 10th solo release. Boasting a core lineup huge in stature, of undeniable 'beyond legendary' status, Dewa Budjana is joined by the incomparable drummer and occasional pianist Jack DeJohnette (Keith Jarrett, Miles Davis; as well over 40 years of career with the fabled jazz & beyond label ECM, ); bassist / stickman Tony Levin (King Crimson, Peter Gabriel, Stick Men), and (John McLaughlin's 4th Dimension) keyboardist & drummer, the UK's Gary Husband (a gentleman also well known for his stellar side work with Allan Holdworth, Jack Bruce, Robin Trower and many more).

Although still a relative newcomer to western audiences, in just three short years Dewa Budjana has produced a string of four successful, critically heralded albums on the eclectic MoonJune Records label: "Dawai In Paradise"(2013); "Joged Kahyangan" (2013); "Surya Namaskar" (2014), and "Hasta Karma" (2015) -- quickly establishing a lofty benchmark for South-East Asian progressive music. On his Favored nations debut, the Balinese guitar maestro fuses elements of multiple genres and vast, diverse musical cultures, weaving his magic in a soaring, synergistic mélange of brilliant, articulate progressive rock, nu-jazz, fusion and world music. A veteran player whose 30-year career has already been marked by collaborations with a virtual "who's who" of musical luminaries (Peter Erskine, Vinnie Colaiuta, Antonio Sanchez, Chad Wackerman, Jimmy Johnson, Jimmy Haslip, Dave Carpenter, Reggie Hamilton, Ben Williams, Joe Locke, Larry Goldings, Janis Siegel, Dwiki Dharmawan, Ron Thal Bamblefoot, Billy Sheehan, and many others), Budjana provides ample evidence that his star remains very much on the rise.

Augmenting this incredible lineup in spectacular fashion are Dewa's special guests: guitar phenom Guthrie Govan (The Aristocrats; Steven Wilson; GPS); UK sax great Tim Garland (Chick Corea; Bill Bruford); the monstrously talented Israeli-born Chicago-based saxman, Danny Markovich (Marbin); as well as cameos from the Czech Symphony Orchestra directed by Michaela Růžičková, the extraordinary Indonesian flutist/vocalist Saat Syah, and Indonesian female singers Ubiet and Risa Saraswati.

Featuring music as ambitious and achieving as its participants, the result is a prodigious, high-altitude sonic adventure unlike any you've ever experienced! Imaginative, daring and 'just baked' fresh, "Zentuary" ranks as one of 2016's most ambitious, 'immediately essential' albums!


"Guitarist Dewa Budjana’s 'Zentuary' stands as his best to date. It’s not just the addition of exceptional, top-quality players such as Tony Levin, Gary Husband, Jack DeJohnette, Tim Garland and Guthrie Govan, that makes this double album so memorable. Budjana himself delivers the kind of lithe and melodically incisive playing that ensures this double album is a noodle-free zone that delivers elegant compositions in a sumptuous, high-value production. Powerful and rather special"
– Sid Smith, Postcards From The Yellow Room, music critic

“With 'Zentuary', Indonesian guitar maestro Dewa Budjana takes the art and sounds of progressive world jazz fusion to the clouds and beyond. With the likes of Tony Levin, Gary Husband, Jack DeJohnette, and other guest stars backing him up, Budjana and his new release could very well shoot to the mainstream in the States.” – Raymond Benson, New York Times best-selling novelist, film & music critic

"Offering a cross-cultural blend of songs which excite, engage, and enthrall listeners (...) synergistic mixture of brilliant instrumental progressive rock, jazz-rock fusion and world music."
– Wesley Derbyshire, Mediaversal

1. dewabudjana.com