Like any good hybrid a great deal can be deduced from the pedigree of the parents. Over the last 18 months Albert De Paname & Ragunath Manet have composed and improvised together in Albert's studio in Nice, gradually crafting an album as exuberant, playful, vibrant and seductive as the country that inspired it. For maximum enjoyment, rain-sodden Anglo-Saxon puritanism should be tethered outside the listening area.

Albert De Paname may not a household name in the UK but then his skills are unashamedly not for everyone. With a distinctly French take on the art and social science of being a DJ, Albert moves and entertains exclusively within the ultra-stylish world of the Parisian 'chic' set.

A one man history of DJ-ing (with a fund of stories to match) Albert began his professional career in 1964 at 'Discotheque Tabou' and progressed via a stint at London's own 'Café De Paris' (1967-1974) through the legendary 'Balajo', the 80's bathhouse and private party scene, and the supremely BCBG 'Eve News', to his current Friday residency at 'Restaurant Maxim's De Paris' - owned and patronised since 1981 by Pierre Cardin. Several generations of the beautiful, the rich and the ambitious have and still do play out their personal dramas to the backdrop of Albert's ever eclectic grooves.

From what seems at least half a world away comes Raghunath Manet, as dedicated a student of the eternal and the classical as Albert is of the contemporary and the fashionable.

Uniquely skilled as both Classical dancer (bharata natyam) and musician (Veena) Raghunath is one of the foremost Indian classical artists in the world today. Born in the former French colony of Pondicherry (at the extreme south-eastern tip of India) he graduated from the esteemed Kalakshetra with the First Prize, and since 1980 has toured the world in performance. He was first Indian dancer in history to be invited to perform at the Paris Opera and his most recent show "The Pondicherry Tour" was a triumphant success everywhere it played.

So how did these two masters of their very different arts meet? In an Indian Restaurant of course: "We discovered common points of reference in our passion for music and our taste for fusion." Albert explains "We both felt the urge to open up to new directions; I wanted to travel through Indian music and Raghunath wanted to experience electronic music."

Albert and Raghunath will spend this Autumn touring with their band, and will play their first ever British concert at Momo's Kemia bar on September 8th, 2003. With according to Albert, improvisation as "the main ingredient of the live show" the UK should shortly be enjoying an Indian Summer to remember!