Guitarist Aram Bajakian kicks ass.
He started performing at the ripe old age of ten, emulating Jimmy Pages “Dazed and Confused†violin bow on guitar cacophony at the Fifth Grade talent show.
He has studied music in West Africa, India and Morocco. But his music is most firmly rooted in the blues.
“My uncle is a master blues player. He’s performed with Taj Mahal, Matt Guitar Murphy, and Clarence Gatemouth Brown. As a teenager, I used to go to his gigs, and watch him play. He taught me the importance of using thick strings, and of how to pick in different areas to illicit different tones from the guitar. His tone is incredible. That along with the aesthetic I learned from punking out in noise bands has had a huge impact on how I play.â€
Bajakian has played/recorded with Yusef Lateef, Marc Ribot, Jamaaladeen Tacuma , Mat Maneri, Sean Noonan, Calvin Weston, Dougie Bownes, Andrea Parkins, Abdoulai Diabte, Iranian-American Songstress Haale, Can Singer Malcolm Mooney, and Hugh Masekela among others.
Here's What critics have to say:
"Aram Bajakian plays his guitar like a percussion instrument, in the East Village no-wave tradition, shooting sparks rather than notes or chords."
The Metroland
Bajakian's piece “Scabies†may be the record’s masterpiece... It’s noisy,
but as was the case of the great 1980s quartet Last
Exit (whose gloriously loud jazz the track resembles),
you can really tell the musicians are listening to
each other.
Troy Collins, All About Jazz
The interlocking guitars of Marc Ribot, Jon Madof and
Aram Bajakian parry and feint with fervent intensity
across the album. The visceral charms of such force are
undeniable.
Chris Nickson,
All Music Guide
