America is very fortunate to have supported many different genres of music: there are composers of every stripe scattered throughout all 50 states. However, there is one style of music that has been long taken for granted and that is Exotica. The genre became popular during the American mid-century and is often associated with the Tiki bar scene and maybe Pee Wee’s Playhouse; it consists of melodies that imbue a certain mysterious quality coupled with percussion and, sometimes, even animal noises and other common jungle sounds.
One of the main historical figures in the Exotica movement was Eden Ahbez, a songwriter and recording artist who made a name for himself in California during the ’40s, ’50s, and ’60s. He was a prototypical hippie responsible for penning Nat “King” Cole’s big hit, “Nature Boy,” and in 1960 Ahbez released his masterpiece, Eden’s Island, the vinyl copy of which has now become very collectible.
Enter producers Brian Chidester and Johan Hjalmarsson and the Swedish musical group Ìxtahuele who resurrected unreleased and unrecorded manuscripts of Ahbez’s by creating a new album of his work titled, Dharmaland. On this program we welcome co-producer Johan, who also plays drums in the group, and another of the band’s talented musicians, Mattias Uneback. They both join me from Sweden.
So, listen to our conversation, but then enjoy the exquisite album that they released which really is capable of transporting you to a strange and mystical natural world accompanied by wistful melodies and dreamlike ambience. You don’t need any apps or screens to enter this alternate dimension, all you need to do is use something that you might have forgotten about: your imagination.
Evan Toth is a songwriter, professional musician, educator, radio host, avid record collector, and hi-fi aficionado. Toth hosts and produces The Evan Toth Show and TVD Radar on WFDU, 89.1 FM. Follow him at the usual social media places and visit his website.
