My introduction to the expansive sonic universe of Dashmesh came in 2024 when the multi-faceted musician, producer, sound healer, naturalistic philosopher and one-man tribal orchestra ensemble brought his hypnotic swirl of trance-inducing didgeridoo, synth textures, drones and pads to iconic tribal dance drummer/composer – and frequent collaborator – Byron Metcalf’s Rituals of Passion, a dual project with violinist Ari Urban.
Though Dashmesh has recorded several previous albums featuring numerous guest artists, his truly epic, sonically intricate and aurally immersive Wayfarer Music Group debut Biomimesis is the first where he has fully performed, recorded and mixed all the parts (outside of the appearances by Metcalf and jazz trumpeter Gabriel Bey). The 8-piece, 68-minute collection spins its majestic ambient and percussive mysteries on a multitude of sonic and thematic levels.
To get the full trance-like effect, listeners should experience the album straight through, from the edgy, tension and dynamics filled “Magic of the Egg Form” (featuring a trance-inducing artful fusion of didgeridoo and seductive percussion) through the spacious, cosmic and rhythmically explosive closing exploration “Star Compass,” which features vocals by Dashmesh’s partner Parvati Forrest Redford, a Tara practitioner and Mandala leader for the past 25 years.
There are literally thousands of eye-opening, soul awakening delights to experience that English adjectives can only hint at. Yet just as fascinating is Dashmesh’s greater meaning behind and purpose in creating the work. Biomimesis is Greek for “Biomimicry,” an emerging scientific discipline with roots in the ancient world. As Dashmesh explains it, it’s an interdisciplinary field that has vast implications, one of which is its ability to create harmony between technology and nature. Biomimicry’s guiding rule is understanding nature as a model and mentor for personal, technological and social development.
Following a muse that has made him something of a regional legend as a performer throughout his home state of Arizona, Dashmesh’s goal is to celebrate this direction and raise awareness of its inestimable value in solving the complex problems human beings face.
Rooted in and a full expression of a lifetime studying music traditions from around the world – Indian tabla, Australian didgeridoo, Japanese Taiko drumming, West African djembe, among others – Dashmesh says, “The album is a call to remember our collective Indigenous heritage from which our relationship to nature is inseparable from the way we broadly perceive, act and organize. It is inspired by the understanding that we share a kinship with the entire web of life and what we do to the web we do to ourselves. It’s not just pointing towards a more ecologically holistic future but encouraging the re-integration of the wisdom of our ancestral past.”
Like a powerful scientific/historical lesson shared through tribal ambient music, each track is a narrative world all its own, starting with “Magic of the Egg Form” being inspired by research into a Biomimicrist and Forest Warden named Viktor Shauberger, who made various scientific inventions revolving around the geometry of the egg and “Nature as Teacher,” a sweeping 10-minute piece featuring Metcalf on frame drum and the voice of Janine Benyus who is nearly singlehandedly responsible for the resurgence of Biomimicry in modern times. Its title reflects the notion that nature should serve as a model and mentor for designing technology to fit healthily within the context of the environment and ecosystems in which it exists.
Later, the blend of skyward soaring ambiences and earthbound percussion of “Towards a Regenerative Culture,” featuring the subtle harmonic textures of trumpeter Gabriel Bay, offers hope about working towards a culture that contributes more than it takes from nature.
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