“It is the position of the IAP that all of the 21 CDs selected as finalists were in fact the [...]]]> Respected Indo-Canadian musician Kiran Ahluwalia won the World Music category at the “Best CDs of 2011″ Indie Acoustic Project awards. The winners in each of 7 categories were selected from among the 3 finalists in each category.

“It is the position of the IAP that all of the 21 CDs selected as finalists were in fact the 21 Best CDs of 2011,” said the press release. “Accordingly, it was extremely difficult to determine the “winner” for each category, as all of the finalist CDs were outstanding in their own rights.”

Winners:

Acoustic Ensemble

Wailin’ Jennys – Bright Morning Stars (Red House)

Instrumental

Acoustic Trio 3000 – Yo Ho (Riva Sound)

Lyrics

Charlie Dore – Cheapskate Lullabyes (Black Ink)

Progressive Edge

Elephant Revival – Break in the Clouds (Ruff Shod)

Rock

Colin Hay – Gathering Mercury (Compass)

Singer-Songwriter

Christine Fellows – Femmes de Chez Nous (Six Shooter)

World Music

Kiran Ahluwalia – Aam Zameen (Avokado Artists)

KIRAN AHLUWALIA

TAKES HOME 2012 JUNO AWARD FOR

AAM ZAMEEN: COMMON GROUND

BEST WORLD MUSIC ALBUM OF THE YEAR

RELEASE FEATURES COLLABORATIONS WITH TINARIWEN, TERAKAFT & MORE!

“If you listen to one new release this week, [...]]]>

KIRAN AHLUWALIA

TAKES HOME 2012 JUNO AWARD FOR

AAM ZAMEEN: COMMON GROUND

BEST WORLD MUSIC ALBUM OF THE YEAR

RELEASE FEATURES COLLABORATIONS WITH TINARIWEN, TERAKAFT & MORE!

“If you listen to one new release this week, make it: Aam Zameen” – Washington Post

“This truly breakthrough album will have you peeling back layers every time you listen, an experience you will never tire from” – Huffington Post

“She has a voice destined to enchant more than one generation” – fRoots

“Seemingly effortless melding of two transcendent styles elevates both to a higher plane” – Globe & Mail

✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ – Songlines

Renowned Indo-Canadian artist Kiran Ahluwalia‘s fifth album, Aam Zameen: Common Ground, was awarded Canada’s prestigious JUNO Award for BEST WORLD MUSIC ALBUM OF THE YEAR at ceremonies in the nation’s capital Ottawa earlier this month. It is Kiran’s second Juno win in the category, having won previously in 2004 for Beyond Boundaries. The Avokado Artists Recordings release, which kicks off with a mesmerizing cover of the Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan classic “Mustt Mustt“, is the product of a close collaboration with Grammy-winning Tuareg band Tinariwen. The album’s influences span four continents and results in a sound that successfully merges contemporary Indian song with Saharan desert blues and beyond.

Produced by Justin Adams (Robert Plant, Tinariwen) and Rez Abbasi in France, the U.K. and Canada, Aam Zameen: Common Ground also features guitar work by both. Ahluwalia and Tinariwen are joined on the record by fellow Tuareg tribesmen Terakaft and Gambian ritti player Juldeh Camara, who lends his craft to several tracks. Members of Ahluwalia’s touring band round out the ensemble, and the whole is mastered by Peter Moore (Cowboy Junkies). The album is distributed in Europe and Australia by Proper UK.

Born in India, raised in Canada and residing today in New York City, Ahluwalia’s international background is evident in her entire approach to music making. Previous recordings have found her fusing the sounds of her native India with those of Portuguese fado, Celtic fiddle and Afghani rhubab. Hailed by the Toronto Sun as “a heady hypnotic mix of Indian rhythms and desert blues,” Aam Zameen: Common Ground continues the JUNO Award-winning artist’s quest to uncover musical links between diverse styles and genres.