Leames is a new project from Mael Chauvet, the Swiss producer behind the projects Berry Weight and Inqi-Teka. He’s once again a wide range of global influences as they release their first album, Dreams Under Trees.

Bringing “world music” into hip hop can be a tricky proposition, as there are plenty of examples out there that are basically throwing beats under compositions from around the globe and calling it a day, and that always ends up sounding like some cheesy musical tourism. The good new about Leames is that Mael Chauvet has been exploring different types of music and finding ways to bring them together for several years now, both under the Berry Weight moniker and with his Inqi-Teka project. For Leames, Chauvet himself brings in turntablism, hand pan, harp, and a few more instruments. Over the course of the album, he’s joined on santour and bansouri by Julien Coste, on Celtic harp by Myrdhin, on steel pan and tablas by Sandosha, on bass by Tommy Herren, on clarinet by Tangay Chauvet, on didgeridoo and beatbox by Mow, and on vocals by Rosa, Paul Akinsinde, and Yann Fanch Kemener. This might seem like a lot of different people bringing some wildly different elements to the table, and it is. In lesser hands, this could be a real mess. Again, though, Chauvet has been building towards this for quite some time, and he’s really learned through careful study and trial and error how best to make this type of music work. One such way that he makes the music work is that he doesn’t try to veer into the trappings of “let’s do a Celtic folk song,” or “now it’s time for a raga.” Instead, what we have an overarching sound that Chauvet has crafted, which isn’t much more beyond your standard downtempo production, but then uses all of these elements to give that production some really unique flavor. This comes by one, taking the time to really learn and master each instrument, and two, knowing that these instruments can be used in ways other than just replicating traditional folk music. So harps can fill in where string samples might usually be used, and didgeridoo can supplement bass lines, and steel pan and tablas can be used to shake up the percussion and make the beats more interesting. It also helps that Chauvet is a very musical turntablist, and his scratching across the album really ties things together nicely. The end result is an absolutely gorgeous album that brings together all sorts of influences for a truly unique sound.

Leames is not something that immediately makes sense on paper, but in practice it absolutely works. Once you get over the hump of recognizing the different instrumentation and are able to take a step back, you’ll appreciate just how good of a songwriter, producer, and arranger Mael Chauvet has become, and how lush and beautiful this album sounds. Dreams Under Trees is his best effort yet.