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Garaj Mahal is a quartet of the highest pedigree. Formed 5 years ago in San Francisco, the band unites four highly skilled players from across the physical and musical globe. Kai Eckhardt, Fareed Haque, Alan Hertz, and Eric Levy have spent their lives making music and becoming masters of their instruments. Together, they create a sound so singular and spectacular that it defies explanation. Eckhardt's globetrotting bass work, Haque's virtuostic guitar ability, Hertz' unfathomable drumming, and Levy's gymnastic keys meet in a spiritual coalescence of jazz-style improvisation, mystical middle-eastern atmospheres, and danceable American funk.

With Blueberry Cave, Garaj Mahal has achieved a new level of cohesion in the studio. Whereas their debut studio album (Mondo Garaj) was recorded within days of the band's formation, Blueberry Cave shows the positive effect of years spent honing their musical relationship on the road. The album's 10 tracks offer glimpses into the band's cavalcade of musical abilities, like exotic global sounds, breakneck fusion workouts, burbling funk, and their own signature style of songwriting.

The album presents the band's varied creations one by one with a masterful flow. Over the course of the disc, the listener will find that the band is equally adept at simmering grooves ("Alvin," "Bicycling In Bombay"), complex compositions ("The Paladin," "Blueberry Cave"), fun-loving funk jams ("No 'Spect," "Cosmic Elevator"), and raucous rhythms ("The Shadow," "Massive"). There's even some turntable work from DJ Fly that adds subtle accents to the band's percolating performances. The mystery of Blueberry Cave will be matched only by the fascination of those who hear it.

Glide recently caught up Kai Eckhardt for a brief Q&A session.

How did the band originally get started?

The band started in 2000 as a loose jam session in front of an audience of some fifty hippies in San Francisco.

The club was the Connecticut Yankee and Alan Hertz, our drummer, took the initiative of calling the session together after he left the band KVHW.

How would you describe your new album?

It is rooted in the funk and weaves in elements from jazz, house, indian classical, rock, celtic and various other world influences. The record also reflects a well tuned band with four years of road experience. Even for those who's cup of tea it is not, a basic integrity stands out. We are happy with that.

Is there any one band or artist that serves as a guidance or inspiration?

There are many, from Weather Report to the Headhunters, from Sly and the family stone to James Brown, from Zakir Hussain to Sivaraman, from Jan Hammer to Zappa, from Avril Lavigne to Led Zeppelin, from James Williams to Pat Martino. From Miles to 'trane. From Adam Sandler to Wesley Willis (for comic relief on the road). The list goes on. We seek to integrate everything we love. It is all music.

Which song or album from history do you most wish you wrote or played on?

Speaking for myself: "Imagine" by John Lennon. It captures the essence of what I want in life and what I pray for in this world. I would also pay all my bills.

What are five heavily played tracks on your iPod or 5 CDs in your rotation right now?

Branford Marsalis: Requiem

Dapp Theory: Y'all just don't know

Kindred: Surrender to Love

Most classic memory from being on the road?

Spending the night with Garaj Mahal inside an earthship! earthships.com And meeting the awesome people in Taos who give hope to human society in the future.

Most memorable on-stage moment so far?

Closing the High Sierra Music Festival with Garaj Mahal in Quincy, CA after playing all night from 2 am to 7 am. Seeing all the happy faces of the party people as the sun rises over the fields.

Who would you most like to open or play with?

I would like to play with Branford Marsalis and I would like to open for Dave Matthews.

Earliest music memory or concert experience?

At age 15, I was the bassist in "Healer," a German rock band. We believed we where the hippest band in town. On the night of our first show we were expecting a huge crowd in the hall we were supposed to play in. Instead the Jantor came and told us in a thick local German dialect that there is no show. He told us to go home. Nobody had booked it! We just simply forgot!

If you weren't playing music, what would you most likely be doing?

I would be asleep, dreaming about music.