© Eric Pemberton
2012
© Only In
Ogden 2012
© Tomas Petr
2012
© Todd Cole
3am Photography and Design 2013
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“The music is a
savage, unrestricted mix of tradition, overlaid with rocking
dynamism, suffused with unstoppable gypsy lust and dark desire,
with an added touch of punk attitude. The soul of a wandering
troubadour meets with a ‘take it or leave it’ approach built on
the free-living nomadic essence that sets up home where the
wheels stop turning. There are no boundaries and fewer
restrictions, recognised or accepted. The intense feeling of
musical freedom is so strong you could reach out and touch it.
This album is as close to musical theatre as much as it is a
sound recording, and it’s highly addictive. One listen tugs you
into Juana Ghani's world of Eastern European inspired
multi-influenced music and lyrics with a pull so strong you’re
instantly living it.” --
Tim Carroll, Folk Words (Jul 23, 2014)
“This is acoustic
euro-gypsy-vodka-punk from the Rocky Mountains, infused with
romantic fin-de-siècle decadence. It’s not literally faithful to
any one specific musical tradition, but it sounds completely
authentic nevertheless; She Lost Her Head contains nine original
and two traditional songs, performed with total commitment and a
real sense that the band is living the life its music
represents. There is a distinctly central European vibe to the
music, both in its insistent off-beat rhythms and in the deep
joyful melancholy expressed by its modalities and its soulful
delivery. This is music to share vodka (or absinthe) to, to
dance to in a big, happy, drunken crowd, to sing along with
while tears stream down your face, a soundtrack for the sunrise
at the end of a long night of half-remembered revelry. Juana
Ghani are a beautiful band, playing right from the heart with
inspiring intensity; this is communal, inclusive, life and death
music.” --
Oliver Arditi, Oliver Arditi (Sep 25, 2014
“Juana Ghani seem to have
a penchant for bringing to life a seedy, seductive back alley in
Italy or Russia through their simultaneously languid and
staccato music.” --
LeAundra Jeffs, SLUG Magazine (Sep 03, 2014)
“Juana Ghiani was an experience that
went far beyond the bandstand. They have a familial tribal vibe
going on that makes a fun atmosphere long before the music
starts to play. Once they get started, the music kicks into
dance-time, with clean controlled rhythms and expressive
singing. I’ve experienced these same Euro-Folk vibes in France,
England, and Holland ... the inclusiveness and simple fun are
impossible to beat” --
Michael's Blog:Beat the Devil
(Mar 30, 2014)
"Best of the Beehive 2012" --
Salt Lake Magazine
"Shall We Live Forever, is a
masterpiece of gypsy-influenced music" --
Gavin Sheehan, City Weekly
"Its as if you’ve been transported to
a entirely different space. Surrounded by hundreds of friends
and family. Singing, dancing, whooping and hollering together.
Almost as if you’re all off in a distant space around a bon
fire, collectively. There is a strong sense of family and unity
that can be found in the air. Which when breathed in gives all
in attendance a sense of belonging. " --
Ferret Rellim, thedrumoldsaw
"Wonderful, wonderful artistry!"
--
B Noel
Barr,
Lunch
at the Barr (HotMix106.com)
"There is something of a
contradiction between the artful poetry of the lyrics and the
communal unity of the sound, but it is a contradiction that
speaks a positive message to the listener. We modern, separated
individuals, it says to us, can find that longed for sensation
of belonging in the community of this music itself. At the same
time there is a fundamental set of creative agreements that
unify the verbal and aural significations of
Budmo!:
a sense of the wholeness of life that mourns and grieves in the
same breath with which it draws the energy to dance. This is
soulful, open, inviting, generous music, both spiritual and
sensual, full of love, death, sex, grief, passion and vodka.
Juana Ghani
offer a glimpse of the community we could inhabit; and for a
brief interval, they bring the opportunity to visit." --
Oliver
Arditi,
independent music reviewer
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© Only In
Ogden 2012
© Only In
Ogden 2012
|
©
Anna Grant 2013
© Tomas Petr
2012
© Redrum
Pikchures 2012 |
"Leading to conclude the night, gypsy
band Juana Ghani transformed the audience from sitting down and
watching to full participation through dancing and celebration.
Equipped with belly dancers and an orchestra of instruments, the
13 performers brought a magical liveliness to their production
by bringing carnival vibes to the festival. Filled with
imagination and a creative outlook on their performance was a
fantastic addition to the fest, and certainly added a jovial
intoxication to the souls of all who were there."
--
Brinley Froelich, SLUG Magazine
(Jul 19, 2012)
"Big Fun in a city short on that
commodity." -- Glen Warchol,
Salt Lake Tribune
"Juana Ghani’s performances are
celebrations — celebrations of the people they are, the cultures
they love and the coming together of worldly people through
worldly music." -- Beth Clifford,
City Weekly
"The band plays Central and Eastern
European-sounding gypsy music with persistent and catchy beats.
Listening to the band for the first time is an experience few
are likely to forget." --
Q
Salt Lake
"...semi- nightmarish fantasies of
violence, revenge, desire and struggle." -- Savannah
Turk, City Weekly
"Having established a vibrant
community of musicians, writers, dancers and other artists,
local band Juana Ghani now has a brand-spanking-new CD of its
distinct, gypsy-influenced sound so fans can appreciate the
musical chops and lyrical complexities of Juana Ghani's members
outside the sphere of their wild live shows" --
Dan Nailen, Salt Lake Magazine / Dan Nailen's Lounge Act
“Central and Eastern European
sounding gypsy music, that bounces along on a persistent,
driving brass bass, with a bewildering cast of multifarious
characters providing a dazzling array of instrumentation, voices
and dance moves. The difficulty at a Juana Ghani gig will be to
remember to come home again afterwards. Intoxicating and
seductive music of the first order.” --
Oliver Arditi,
LiveUnsigned
"Wonderful gypsy folk!" "I like
to think of Juana Ghani as almost like a circus. You know,
they're touring around the country with their tigers and their
clowns and people who can hula hoop really well." -- Frankie
Ward,
Amazing Folk Roots Show
"Very lively and wonderful, clapping and dancing cannot be
avoided upon listening" --
Red Wound
"Taking our listeners into a
dimension far from anything heard earlier in the mix,
Juana Ghani’s
“Amari Szi Amari”
speaks a musical language known by many and spoken by few.
There are elements of Eastern, Western and other worldly
cultures included here, with a strong commitment to times of old
… a very interesting find to bring our listeners!" --
Brian Ball,
"The Plug" on Women's Radio
"... a veritable breath of fresh
air!!" --
Wily Bo Walker,
Rattlin' Bone
"... forthright ..." "This is
quite special!" -- Nick
Tann Is This Thing On?
"exotic" -- Frankie Ward,
Amazing Folk Roots Show
"I Really think you captured some
magic in Quiet & Cold. So good!!!" -- Jesper Eriksson,
The Auto Dropouts
" True free spirit! Exccelent!"
--
Siempre
"They put on a hell of a show!"
"...such an amazing show!" -- Johnny Cat Farmer,
Utah Musicians radio
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© Redrum
Pikchures 2012
© Rudy van Bree 2013 |