An accomplished producer, Wayy created this recording out of his deep desire to end world hunger. The result is an album full of intense passion. Ambient trance rhythms provide the backdrop for an incredible array of world music talent. Soaring operatic female vocals, Senegalese chants, and Scottish whistle blend exquisitely on "Temptations." Russian Monks and Pygmies lend their voices to Moroccan percussion on "Free Your Mind." Acoustic instrumentation from traditional instruments such as koto, sitar, and tabla give an air of ancient refinement to the album. Finally, Wayys talent as a popular producer and a songwriter complement the culturally diverse performances, resulting in a captivating, provocative recording. XCULTURES, ONE WORLD, ONE PEOPLE grabs you and pulls you into a world of expansion, acceptance, and appreciation for the diversity and common thread we all share as fellow citizens on planet Earth.

Bette Timm / NAPRA

 press reviews

Pulling this off musically takes a particular kind of artist and Brian Wayy gives it his all. Unlike someone like James Asher, another world fusion/electronic artist, Wayy "travels the world" (each cut has a nifty passport stamp in the liner notes) unifying them all via various beats and synths (otherwise keeping the ethinc flavors relatively intact) whereas
James Asher (Tigers Of The Raj, Raising The Rhythms) puts assorted cultures music into a blender and spins it up into an exotic smorgasbord. As a result, Brians CD winds up being more of an electronica guided tour of sorts. Not a bad thing when done this well,
I might add. The impression I am left with is that this album celebrates the differences
in the musical cultures of diverse countries (e.g. Japan, Senegal, China, Spain, and Iran), while not necessarily signifying a common musical ground. Of course, the fact that Brian brought all the assorted musicians and singers together for the project (theres lots of vocals on this album) certainly can be viewed as both a personal tribute to his conviction as well as indicating a willingness of people of varied countries to work together.
results to my ears. The beats themselves on the album vary in tempo and how they are applied, from almost techno speed to a more laid back approach. Technically, the album sounds great. All the samples are well-recorded and engineered. And the beats are superbly layered in the mix.
If you can never get enough of Deep Forest or similar artists, you should love this. Its very much a club-like sound, courtesy of all the beats, but it also has tons of world music on it. Owing to the challenge of what went into this, its a formidable achievement.

copyright 1999 Wind and Wire/Bill Binkelman

 press reviews

This is a very creative new project, produced by Brian Wayy, and we predict a real impact release with "One World One People". Very much in the vein of Atman, Deep Forest, Btribe, etc., this debut effort nevertheless has loads of originality and ingenuity, and a lot of heart. Journeying from very advanced societies to desolate third world nations, and filled with all manner of provocative sounds, XCULTURES explores talented artistry immersed in passionate exploration. Global dance grooves and exotic vocal percussions find the perfect balance, with the vocal tracks,especially those by Stefanie Naifeh, whose voice is reminiscent of GOL, Moodswings, Delerium and other top notch global/ambient breakthrough. This release is poised and ready to start off the New Millenium in a far-reaching global way, thanks to the world-wide vision of Brian Wayy,
One-third of artist royalties are being donated to CARE devoted to ending
world hunger. A top debut for 2000!

Lloyd Barde / Backroads Music

 press reviews