Jeff Stott & Drumspyder
Middle Eastern music and belly dancing meet house and breaks at Dakini Nights

Courtesy of Dakini Records

A one-man crusade for the music of South Asia, the Middle East, and its fusion with contemporary electronica, American expat Gio Fazio (a.k.a. Makyo) set up Dakini Records a decade ago as a vehicle for his own releases and others by likeminded artists.

Tall, lean and with luminous, dark eyes peering out from behind a curtain of brown curls, Makyo was a familiar figure perched behind the decks at the chill-out rooms of Japan’s seminal raves of the ’90s. But as he began to compose tracks, he gradually began to spice his ambient sets with the piquant Asian sounds he was becoming increasingly infatuated with.

His Dakini Nights are now Japan’s leading venue for this kind of music, over the years welcoming artists of worldwide renown including (most recently) Iranian/American crossover unit Niyaz. After a two-year break, Makyo returns with what should be a stellar night, featuring American duo Jeff Stott & Drumspyder.

A trained anthropologist and composer of “Arabtronica,” Stott plays several Middle Eastern stringed instruments, including the oud, say and dulcimer, accompanied by Drumspyder on the darabukka drums. Stott’s download-only EP Souksonik went to No. 5 on the UK world music charts earlier this year, while Dakini has just released Ketri, the new album from Stott’s band Lumin.

“I toured with Jeff in the US and Canada this spring, and was so blown away, I figured I had to bring him over,” says Makyo. “Jeff has come up with a really natural fusion of traditional Middle Eastern melodies and rhythms with breaks, serious funk and deep house. Live, he and Drumspyder both play their instruments, while using two synched laptops to mix back tracks and effects real time.”

Improving on clubbing’s predictable on-screen CG eye-candy, Dakini Nights can also be counted on to feature impossibly supple, erotic performances by Japanese womanhood’s dedicated corps of belly dancers. Saturday’s Volume 16 won’t be an exception, with a performance by the duo of E-chan & Milla, whose petite figures belie their outsize athleticism. Also to appear is the willowy and enchanting Mishaal, an American belly-dance teacher and leader of her own Tokyo troupe.

Dakini Nights@SuperDeluxe, Nov 10. See club listings for details.

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