Ancient Future — Purple Spirits (Tributes to Musical Giants) (Ancient-Future.Com Records, 2026)
On Purple Spirits, Ancient Future has gathered multifaceted and imaginative tributes to artists with historical ties to the long-running American world music fusion ensemble. The West Coast musicians present a set of cathartic pieces deeply influenced by Indian classical music, jazz, flamenco, Vietnamese traditions and rock.
The delightful “Punjabi Jhinzaki” honors tabla master Ustad Zakir Hussain, who contributed to Ancient Future’s development and appeared on the group’s album World Without Walls. Meanwhile, “Spirit Of Nirvana” addresses the group’s unexpected connection to Nirvana.
“East Of The Sun (Studio Version)” features a stellar performance by Oregon member Paul McCandless on oboe; the recording is described as his final released oboe performance after a 2017 health condition led him to retire from the instrument.
The album also includes the soulful “Tres Tarantas Tres,” a tribute to flamenco guitarist David Easley, a former Boulder High School guitar student of Ancient Future founder Matthew Montfort.
In addition, the mesmerizing “Purple Nam” and “Purple Haze (Vietnamese Đàn Bầu Style)” pays tribute to Jimi Hendrix through Indian raga and Vietnamese music elements.
Performers include Matthew Montfort on scalloped fretboard guitar, Glissentar 11-string fretless guitar, flamenco guitar, and fretless bass; Bui Huu Nhut on Vietnamese đàn bầu; Abbos Kosimov on Uzbek percussion; Mariah Parker on keyboards and santur; Benjy Wertheimer and Aditya Kalyanpur on tabla; George Brooks on saxophone; Kai Eckhardt on fretless bass; and Paul McCandless on oboe.
Founded in 1978, Ancient Future has developed a rich catalog of world music fusion, with a rotating chamber ensemble that includes traditional musicians from multiple regions. The band’s discography includes Visions of a Peaceful Planet (1979), Natural Rhythms, Quiet Fire (Narada Lotus 1012, 1986), World Without Walls (Narada/Sona Gaia 163, 1990), Dreamchaser (Narada/Sona Gaia 154, 1998), Asian Fusion (Narada Equinox 63023, 1993), Planet Passion (Ancient-Future.Com AF 2001, 2002), Yearning for the Wind (2014).
Buy Purple Spirits.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.