» Unusual, bold, interesting and innovative «
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music-magazine: GoodTimes / 02-2011
Harry Payuta is considered one of Germany's best Sitar players - why, he demonstrates on his ninth album.
All tracks literally vibrate and the Sitar-melodies are homogeneously integrated into western Rock-sounds and grooves. Payutas music can perhaps be called ''World-Rock'' including electronic sounds.
Harry Payuta is at least remarkable and his music grabs the listener. Unusual as bold, interesting and innovative.
» A great album that combines musical worlds! «
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MuskZirkus Magazin / 01-2011
ZACATECOLUCA is Harry's 9th album, on which he combines the Sitar and ethnic elements with Rock Music.
The pieces are mostly instrumental and ''ear-catching'', because Harry is focusing on the melodies.
''Aqua del Mar'', sung by Melvin Hernandez, with using electric guitar and latin rhythm become a tribute to Carlos Santana (the piece could actually be from a Santana Album).
And ''Great To Be Anywhere'' breathes the pure Rock (though the Sitar again brings an incomparable tone to the track). A touch of Rolling Stones cannot be dismissed out of hand. Harry has dedicated this piece to Keith Richards.
''Zacatecoluca'' is a successful blend of Ethno-Rock Music and other musical styles. A highly recommended CD for music lovers who are able to look outside the box and the usual sound of the Sitar (it is used very often and reminds much to George Harrison). A great album that combines musical worlds!
» ''Zacatecoluca'' ... something special! «
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Rocktimes / 12-2010
ZACATECOLUCA is brilliantly staged music and offers a real alternative to conventional, everyday sounds. This album is something special. It's amazing how many varieties Payuta has come up. Oh Lord, this bass in the driving then flying ''Carrera'' is to die for!
In addition Payuta plays guitar on ''Great To Be Anywhere'', a homage to Keith Richards and it has some tasty guitar licks.
Respect! Harry Payuta succeeded with ZACATECOLUCA a remarkably balanced and with many refinements featured album. The Indian instrument in the foreground and the beautiful musical environment, the well forty-nine minutes have been well designed.
Who is looking for something unique, will come to this Payuta plate from over.
» new album ''Zacatecoluca'' / Progressive and original «
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Prog-Reviews / 11-2010
An experienced german Sitar player, who combines on his 9th album Worldmusic with electronic rhythms, funky bass pulsing (as Chapman-Stick players) and sometimes jazzy Sitar solos.
Harry Payuta has his sitar playing ''very westernized'' so that in places only the instrument is indian but not the play. Payuta plays with his Friends unusual and really interesting music.
Imagine just before, the disc has Tony Levin (basses here to remind me several times to him) brought out with his buddies from around the world on ''Real World'' Label by Peter Gabriel, ok?
» Rock-Music with a light India vibe «
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FolkWorld / 03-2011
Harry Payuta is a sitar, guitar and bass player and together with friends on piano, guitar, percussion and vocals he has recorded fifteen of his new compositions on this ninth album ZACATECOLUCA.
Don’t expect to hear some subtle and traditional Sitar music. Payuta likes rock and plays his Sitar as if he is playing an electric guitar.
This results in a kind of Rock-Music with a light India vibe, but only because of the recognizable sound of the instrument. Suitable for those who like pop music and is in the mood for an exotic touch.
» Payuta in Germany: ''He get´s better & better'' «
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Kreiszeitung Ottersberg / 07-2009
''Harry Payuta always get´s better - as a soloist or with band'', a fan of the world musician enthused about his career.
Since two years living in Central America, Payuta spent some days in Germany and gave a unique concert with his original band PAYUTA & FRIENDS. He was really pleased about the great interest for his music and pronounced a Best of Harry Payuta event. The first part of the concert he played solo. Barefoot sitting on his carpet he played the first part solo and took the audience for a musical journey.
The second set he played with his original band Harry Payuta & Friends. Frank Mattutat, drums, Ralf Marckardt, bass and Christian Wiegenhagen, guitar, performed a mix from the 8 CD's of Payuta. Enthusiastic applause brought the band to his top form.
» A spectacle never seen en El Salvador «
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German Embassy in El Salvador / 02-2009
Already the 2nd time the wellknown german Sitar-Player Harry Payuta took part at the Music Festival in Suchitoto / El Salvador. At the 14. of febrero he gave a concert with several dancers, the guitar player Carlos Mendoza and the percussionist Konstantin Danilova.
At the end of the concert Harry Payuta did something never seen and heard in El Salvador; two titles with the australian Didgeridoo. Beneath the indian Sitar also an instrument pretty unknown in Centro-America.
The big audience was very enthusiastic from the varied program and the performances of dancers.
» A musician very special «
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Kreiszeitung-Bremen / 02-2009
At the 4. of juli there will be a concert with a very special musician: Harry Payuta, who today lives in El Salvador,
While he is presenting his music there with great success, he decided to give some concerts again in Germany. One will be at the KuKuC in Ottersberg near Bremen with his german band: Matthias Monka, Frank Mattutat, Ralf Marckardt and Christian Wiegenhagen.
» Payuta & Friends - DEPARTURE / Rock-Sitar «
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Bewusster Leben / 04-2008
Since the 70th Payuta plays Rock, Blues, Jazz, Avantgarde and Worldmusic. In this process for him more and more an instrument became important, that is very untypical for this music: The indian Sitar.
In his 8th album the german multiinstrumentalist get's back to his roots Rock and Blues. The Sitar, the main melody instrument, not only replaces the traditional Rock-Guitar, it even beats it with it's fine shading. This is to hear on Blueshits like ''On the Road again'' from Canned Heat.
All songs, except this and a track from Frank Zappa, are new and written by Payuta.
The profoundet lyrics are by Matthias Monka, who knows to sings them with an intoxicating, charismatic voice.
Not only qualified for an ambitious Dance-Party.
» Payuta & Friends - DEPARTURE «
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Global Mojo / 11-2007
The sitar opens as if it was to become a song for the Beatles-Album ''Rubber Soul''.
But it won't, because Harry Payuta, in business since Amon Düül, is not only a god-gifted multi-instrumentalist but also sparkles with ideas of his own.
So he created a whole string of real catchy melodies and Matthias Monka's somewhat soulful vocals add a lot to turn them into songs of quite similar qualities as in the - at least partly - hip 1960s.
No wonder, some single tunes by Canned Heat and Frank Zappa blend in so well.
Nobody ever integrated the sitar into western Pop music in a more competent and adequate manner than Payuta, and few are capable like him of keeping the good spirit of the 60s alive without sliding off into cheap nostalgia. A great album!
» Intoxicating Farewell-Concert «
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Weser Kurier / 06-2007
Harry Payuta changes to El Salvador for some years and the fans were standing till outside the door for this musical Goodbye.
Payuta fuses the sound of the indian Sitar with influences of Pop, Jazz and Blues to a unique musical stream. A sizzling, very rhythmic stream, in which musical afterimages appear like rocks of the past.
Seeming facile the riffs from ''Jumping Jack Flash'' are inserted in the special aura of the indian instrument. ''Like an Eagle'' is a song with an absolutely country feeling, that in his further course reminds the great ''Allman Brothers''.
Elsewhere a heavy drum leads to rockmusical canyons, from where Payutas Sitar is howling like an electric guitar.
This all may show, how it succeeded Payuta & Friends, to integrate the special sound of the Sitar in a soundscape, that reflects the musical influences of an eventful musical background in a homogeneous form.
And finally ''DEPARTURE'', the new album of Payuta, has become a song album. Not at least the souly voice of Matthias Monka admits this great meeting of Sitar and Pop-Music.
» Harry Payuta changes to El Salvador «
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Weser Kurier / 06-2007
The wellknown Sitar-Player leaves Germany and changes to El Salvador for some years to work there as a musician and producer.
His new CD ''DEPARTURE'' will be released in oct. 2007 and the critics are unique already before the release: ''Payuta's rock-bluesy sitar and Matthias Monka's soulful vocals blend here in an entirely new and surprising sound.''
» Farewell and new CD ''DEPARTURE'' «
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Achimer Kreisblatt / 06-2007
TV und Radio-Shows, sold out concert tours, CD productions and performances in front of excalted fans made this extraordinary musician to a Star in this genre.
Harry Payuta goes to El Salvador to work there as a musician and a producer. At his Farewell-Concert at 16th/june the songs of his new CD »DEPARTURE« will be already performed, although the CD which will come out in october 2007 (JARO-Medien).
Payuta worked on this album clothly together with Matthias Monka (Vocals, Piano), who already has worked with artists like Joe Cocker and Phil Collins.
» SITAR JOURNEYS - New and long awaited. The new Sitar-Album of Payuta! «
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Traumzeit / 02-2006
New and long awaited. The new Sitar-Album of Payuta!
»Sitar ... Journeys« is a consequential trip. The cosmic shaman Payuta has produced a brillant and alluring CD:
Like a maelstrom the songs involves deeper and deeper into sense, trance, relaxation and actual at the end there´s only one ... Repeat!
More than 70 minutes the 8 new songs are weaving deep into the awareness of the auditor - most of the songs are 10-minute tracks and full of suspending arrangements, which are circling round the Sitar like a ring.
Smooth trance-rhythms pulsates and - as the cover shows - let you flow through unknown galaxies.
» Payuta´s most tropical album «
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ORF AT web-radio - Highlights / 03-2005
Karibische Sitar
Take an indian instrument, a world-open spirit, a pack of music paper and then up to the CARIBBEAN! Namely to one of the less crowded islands, Tobago for example.
There Harry Payuta composed in face of all the deflection of the tropic sun and the tropc surf amongst the noisiness of tropic birds and tropic rain, his most tropical album, that he produced in Fischerhude with hid ''Friends''.
The result is »india redhot blue« and satisfies all music-requirements between rockin´-jazzin´ and indo-caribbean dance-meditations in fast and slow motions. Worthy to hear!
» There is no limit of styles «
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Jazzdimensions - Berlin / 02-2005
There is no limit of styles for Harry Payuta. Already in 2003 he produced »Sitar Movements« und »Sitar Signs«, which was more than succeeded a fusion of Indian-Music and Trance.
»india redhot blue« was composed on Tobago, so between Blues influences, Jazz and Rock there are also appended sounds from the Caribbean, mixed with incomparable grooves, ocean- and jungle-sounds. One more time Payuta & Friends did the splits of music very successful.
» The grandson of Sgt. Pepper «
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FOLKER / 02-2005
Payutas new album pricked up my ears, for it contains ten compositions in the area between US-Folkrock, British Psychedelia and those three years of Popmusic (1967-69), when even the hardest Rock´n´Roll- Band on earth (Rolling Stones) used the Sitar.
Payuta arranged the tracks like he would have done it in a Rockband: Lead-Sitar, Rhythmus-Sitar, Bass-Sitar on a conventional Bass & Drums-basis, divers Keyboard-Sounds, Tenorsax, Clarinet, Violin, Viola, Esraj as well as a lot of percussion-instruments.
So Payuta only had to inspire some spirit of the late sixties and ready was »the grandson of Sgt. Pepper«.
» Master of Ethno-Grooves «
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Weser-Kurier / 11-2004
On his new album »india redhot blue« (Jaro-Medien) Harry Payuta succeeded the fusion of India and the Caribbean. He combines the warm and always a bit mysterious sound of the sitar with the temper of the Tobago-Island, mixing Trance-Grooves and Jazz- and Rock-elements among them.
He favorites the Sitar because of the significant sound and tries to find new ways. On »india redhot blue« he worked very successful.
» There's nothing else like it in the world «
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ixthuluh-Österreich / 11-2004
There's nothing else like it in the world - this blend of Indian ragas, jazz, ambient, trance and shamanic elements, Harry Payuta's special brand of Worldbeat - Music.
» as relaxing as it is crackling with suspense «
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Chr. Emigholz - Music Journalist / Nov 2004
Harry Payuta has arrived! Four words suffice to sum up the great leap the world beat musician has made with his current album India redhot blue. The result is an album as relaxing as it is crackling with suspense, a fruit that can only have ripened in the Southern sun.
» COSMIC SHAMAN «
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Sound Spirit / 01-2004
Payuta reached a first class synthesis between indian music and Trance-Ambient.
Wonderful soundscapes played by a »cosmic shaman«, to experience visions and for dancing. East meets West.
» Payuta combines indian Sitar with western grooves «
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Spuren - Schweiz / 12-2003
On his new album SITAR MOVEMENTS Payuta combines indian Sitar with western grooves with ability and a very good feeling.
» The music excites to a kind of flotation. «
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Jazz Podium / 08-2003
Payuta uses the timbre of the Sitar and the meditativ base of indian music, to realize his own ideas of melody and sounds. The music excites to a kind of flotation
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