Azam Ali eagerly embraces a one-world vision, the notion that the blending of cultures will lead to less division and more continuity and unity, with music leading the way.

"It's great that people are creating this kind of music out there," she says of the proliferation of artists blending elements from many different cultures. "And as the world becomes smaller, as is happening with technology, and so many children nowadays born to parents from very different cultural and religious backgrounds, more of this will happen until it becomes one thing."

Niyaz's 2005 debut featured a convincing blend of Sufi mysticism and trance electronica, and quickly established them as a standout ensemble in a very crowded world music field.

Vocalist Azam Ali performs in a concert. – Photo by Azam Ali

The entire team of Niyaz performs at a concert in Los Angeles, United States. –Photo by Azam Ali

Azam Ali sings in yet another concert with distinctive set depicting Islamic architecture. She has known as one of the most prolific, versatile, and gifted singers globally. – Photo by Azam Ali

Niyaz's 2005 debut featured a convincing blend of Sufi mysticism and trance electronica, and quickly established them as a standout ensemble in a very crowded world music field.

Vocalist Azam Ali performs in a concert. – Photo by Azam Ali

The entire team of Niyaz performs at a concert in Los Angeles, United States. –Photo by Azam Ali

Azam Ali sings in yet another concert with distinctive set depicting Islamic architecture. She has known as one of the most prolific, versatile, and gifted singers globally. – Photo by Azam Ali

So why did Niyaz, the Los Angeles-based group consisting of her, musician Loga Ramin Torkian and electronics specialist Carmen Rizzo, make its new album 'Nine Heavens' two things? The release from Six Degrees Records is split up into a pair of discs, the first utilizing Rizzo's electronic touches, the second strictly acoustic. But both sport largely the same material, even the same basic performances of music rooted in Persian, Turkish and South Asian elements, all played sparklingly by a very versatile ensemble with Ali's stunning, rich voice offering lyrics drawn from classical Urdu and Farsi poetry. The electronics-enhanced version of 'Ishq – Love and the Veil' is a good example of how the different elements are blended into an arresting experience. But the acoustic performance of the same song is no less striking, even while offering an entirely different atmosphere. (You can hear a clip of the acoustic version, as well as bits of all the album's tracks, here).

It's simple, both Ali and Torkian say: The two approaches can help draw more people into their one world. "A lot of people who love world music cannot get past the electronic sounds," Torkian says. "So providing something more acoustic would allow them to appreciate the music. And a lot of people on our first Niyaz album were not realizing how much acoustic work we were doing to create the music. It was standing on its own and we felt compelled to include it."

Don't make the mistake of thinking that the two approaches divide neatly down clear-cut lines, though. It's not a matter of one disc being modern and the other traditional, or Eastern and Western.

"Our work includes elements that is still more traditional, but it includes original material that is not traditional," says Torkian about the pieces in both the electric and acoustic settings. "It is done in such a way that I like to call the sound of immigrant artists. We do come from a very strong tradition of mystical poetry and traditional melodies. But we're exposed to a lot of different sounds that become part of us. So in that way, this is not traditional but a portrait of ourselves."

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