Customer Reviews

Steam (Hamam: The Turkish Bath) - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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"Steam (Hamam: The Turkish Bath)," the CD, is the soundtrack to a film by Turkish director Ferzan Ozpetek. Although I haven't seen the film, the soundtrack has become one of my favorites. This is a sensuous, beautiful collection of music with a sound that is ancient, exotic, and modern all at once.

The liner notes record that several exotic-sounding instruments are part of the CD's musical tapestry. Instruments listed include qraqeb, derbouka, nansur ney, kawwal, and monotsapuno. The liner notes also describe the international elements that combined to produce this remarkable music. Vocal performances are contributed by Rosie Wiederkehr and Faisal Taher.

The selections on the CD are a nice mix: all instrumental pieces, male vocal solo, female vocal solo, and group vocals. The music is sometimes haunting and mystical, and sometimes so rousing that you might jump up and start belly dancing. "Steam" is a really beautiful, exciting CD. If you are interested in movie soundtracks or world music, I recommend this CD to you.

Just from the very moment i heard the opening tunes of Hamam (Bosphorus version) i was captivated! It is so ethereal yet very earthly. The funny thing is that, the music (and the film itself) allowed me to re-explore this beautiful city with unblinking eyes. Looking at the ever-changing blue of the Bosphorus, walking down the anonymous back-streets, and feeling the light breeze of an old city while listening to this enchanting album left me breathless. It's a modern classic with "secret" vocals between the melodies. It just adds another dimension to your ears that you won't ever forget. Don't miss it. You might be missing a once-in-a-lifetime experience...

What a great album! From the back cover,"The exotic, sensual score is influenced by traditional Turkish/Ottoman melodies and the trance ceremonies of the Sufi dervishes, as well as the cultured Turkish music of the early 1900s and contemporary ambient music",i'm sure you will know what it means after you hear the album,and you may wonder,"how about go and watch this "Steam-y" film!" This sensual album also reminds me of "Enigma". I am also attracted to the cover of this album too, favourite tracks: 11,13,14,17

THe CD presents an environment that is quite independent of the film itself. I have not had the chance to catch the film in any theaters around here, however, the CD is very much stand alone in nature. It provides a good mix of traditional melodies and old/modern rhythms with new age type of synth treatments. Fans of "Passion" the soundtrack for "the last temptation of Christ" by Peter Gabriel, and followers of such music groups as Deep Forest will find musical material they are familiar with... but you also will be pleasently suprised to find different mixes of the original theme song: "Istanbul uyurken" including the dancey remix at the end. I would say this album is a must buy for anyone that appreciates eatern music and is open to modern treatment of old musical themes.

Close your eyes and feel the light breeze on a Bosphorus ferry. Excellent music with lots of percussions and sufi melodies.

I was looking for dance music and I came across this disc, after listenning to the sample of Gece Ziyareti and Iptal, I knew that I've found the music that I've been looking for. The composition of this entire album is an amazing blend of great melodic lines and instrumentation and percussion. The east-meet-west cross cultural sounds really worked out well instead of just a cheesy "lump-together". I have great respect for the artists that created this brilliant piece of music. It's hard to find music with real emotional substance these days, most commercial/film music sound so artificial and formulaic that they lack originality and a sense of imagination, but this one is really a great awakening. Although the synthesized sounds sometimes sound a little out of date, nevertheless it's a first grade recording. hauntingly beautiful.

I just saw the movie on Bravo 2 weeks ago as I was dozing off to sleep on my couch. The soundtrack woke me up and IPTAL haunted me- I kept hearing it in my dreams and I knew I had to buy this CD right away. I was thrilled to find it and I have played this CD in my car, house and at work every day for the last week. And I still love the haunting melodies and driving drum tracks on this CD. My gratitude to the composers and artists who are on the tracks. Beautiful, spiritual, and can be played endlessly never tiring of it. I find new meaning in every song over an over again. I hope Transcendental produces more beautiful music such as this again.

The Steam soundtrack is one of the best international cd's I've ever encountered. With strong vocals, and exotic beats and rythm, it has become no 1 on my list.

I have been getting into Middle Eastern music, heard a cut on the radio from this album and purchased the CD. An awesome CD. From the first song to the last song this CD draws you into its space and resonates to your soul. Very nice, soothing and introspective music.

The soundtrack of Steam is one of the film's most compelling elements, and there are many of those. The music is delightful and spellbinding. The authentic feel of Turkish sounds combined with modern, "new age" touches makes for a wonderful listen. Go see the movie. Go get the soundtrack.