Here are four releases that take you to places and spaces far and wide, and far out!
Sitarist Shujaat Husain Khan joins with the haunting nasal voice of Katayoun Goudarzi for a handful of songs that ring in traditional Indian sounds and rhythms. The rest of the team, Ajay Prasanna/fl, Abhiman Kaushal/table, Ahsan Ali/sarangi, Prabhat 
Mukherjee/santoor and Amjad Khan/perc, provide ample support. Most of the songs open with Prasanna’s brooding flute calling out into the wind, as the sarangi and santoori join in with taps and weaving bows. Khan’s sitar plays into the deep rhythmic grooves of “Adrift” and “Not Taken” with the percussion causing rivulets of drones. The tempo stays fairly constant throughout all of the songs, which either makes you feel like you’re on a long caravan ride, or slowly delving into a trance.
The Gentleman’s Dub Club includes Tommy Evans/dr, Niall LaVelle/perc, Toby Davies/b-key, Nick Tyson/g, Kieren Gallagher/as and Matt Roberts/tp in support of Jonathan Scratchley’s lead vocals. The band mixes classic reggae with a bit of a modern rock beat, with songs such as “Bad Girl” hinting at vintage Jimmy Cliff. There are some rich vocal harmonies on “Extraordinary” with extra vocals from Natty on “One Night Only” while Josh Arcoleo’s tenor livens up “Nocturnal.” The textures run deep here, and the extra dashes of keyboards here and there keep things interesting and varied for its genre.
So, after Central Asia and Jamaica, where else to go but outer space? Guitarist Alan J. Bound gives an homage to the sound and feel to the likes of early Pink Floyd, Camel or Van der Graff Generator on this retrospective disc with Jaki Liebezeit/dr-Janusz Korzen/dr and HT-Omar Ibrahim/b. You get lots of slowly pulsating synth and plodding drums as on “N365” with progressive guitar sounds mixed with spacey noodles on “Solaris 2014” and “Delightful Changes.” Rocking drums with moody synths trudge along on “Elephant” and sounds like a night at Lazarium work through the speakers on “Mooglider.” Is this the Light Side of the Moon?”
While the tradition and influence of Karavan Sarai may come from Central Asia, the actual sounds produced by Narayan Sijan and Carmen Rizzo sound a lot like the Greek folk music that I grew up listening to as a child. It is quite fascinating how the mix of percussion, sitar and western strings can go back and forth between cultures as on “Schirin” and “the Journey.” Jason O’Keefe’s udu drum on “Desert Water” brings a Mediterranean groove to the atmosphere and Yinon Darwish’s stringed kamancheh during High Mountain could fit in either the Purvanchal Mountains or Mount Zion. The mood can fit anywhere, making you wonder if Marco Polo only brought spaghetti and spices from the east.