Hala Strana mastermind Steven R. Smith writes the music that Yanni, Afro Celt Sound System and all the other "world music" posers you hear at the beginning of yoga class wish they had the balls to release. That is, while Smith readies himself at the same starting line as these chumps, mixing and matching cultures as he sees fit, he's careful to avoid kitschy "Westernisms" such as drum loops, synths and slick production, relying instead on the beauty of authentic acoustic instruments. He cares not for gussying up his work for commercial appeal; he leaves edges rough throughout the disc to afford each instrument its natural resonance, buzz and crackle.

The payoff for stepping out on this limb is big: each of these instrumentals is an intriguing, otherworldly mix of forensic musicology and Smith's slightly more modern vernacular. Violins and ancient flutes, harpsichords and bouzoukis, clay flowerpot percussion and ouds all join field recordings (literally) and a healthy dose of silence to present slices of Hungary, Latvia and North Cali (Smith's homeland). Though the blend might seem odd, Smith's tact and respect for each country is at the forefront of these experiments. His research on each culture's music, conducted at the Smithsonian and the Library of Congress archives, leads the way as far as what he can smudge and what he should preserve from each tradition.

By avoiding recontextualized futurism and allowing the essence of these rhythms and ancient sounds to speak, Smith gives These Villages a timeless quality -- further proof simple, straightforward ideas often yield great things.