Guara Vani & As Kindred Spirits and Mayapuris on tour

Perhaps because of yoga’s pervasive popularity, kirtan, the musical wing of Bhakti yoga, is enjoying a mainstream renaissance. A new crop of hip, cross-cultural artists are imbuing kirtan’s sacred, 5,000 year old musical mantras with modern influences like edgy pop, gospel, hip hop and electronica. Mantralogy Records (a division of reputable punk rock label Equal Vision) is poised as the vanguard of bringing this “new school” kirtan to the masses, and two of it’s artists, Gaura Vani & As Kindred Spirits and the Mayapuris, are on tour now and on their way to the Los Angeles area.

Kirtan helps free the heart and mind from its worldly constraints and open up to a collective internal consciousness. With new school kirtan, the spirit of the music is the same but the packaging is slightly different, which is why the bands are as happy in a yoga studio or temple as they are on NPR or Lollapalooza.

7/26/09 – Bhakti Yoga Shala, Santa Monica, CA
207 Arizona Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90401
8:30 pm, donations accepted

7/28/09 – Exhale Yoga (Asana class with Saul David Raye)
245 south main street
Venice, CA, USA 90291
8:00 pm

7/31/09 – Kuli Mela Festival, Ford Amphitheatre, Los Angeles, CA
2580 Cahuenga Blvd E
Los Angeles, CA , 90068
7:00 pm

8/02/09 – Festival of the Chariots, Venice Beach, CA
Venice Beach, California, USA 90401
10:00 am

8/03/09 – Workshops with Shiva Rea, Exhale Yoga, Venice CA
245 south main street
Venice, CA, USA 90291
8:00 pm

8/07/09 - Rasa Lila Ecstatic Kirtan w/ the Mayapuris, Exhale Yoga, Venice, CA
245 south main street
Venice, CA, USA 90291
8:00 pm

--Break from West Coast for UK and India tour--
And the drive into the desert for the annual Bhakti Fest, a week-long party celebrating positive consciousness, is always worth the trip:
9/11/09 – Bhakti Fest, Joshua Tree, CA
1668 Rising Glen Rd.LA, CA 90069
6:00 pm