Head Spins: Inga Ambrosia

Every once in awhile, I stumble upon a DJ who's diggable in ways even I've never considered. Such was the case when I slipped into the Grove's Butter Gallery for Alissa Christine's photo show and got to hear the lady named Inga Ambrosia.

First things first: Inga A. is not just a DJ. She's also "an artist, author, poet, blogger, art teacher, singer, and nature photographer/videographer." Which is to say it's highly unlikely this renaissance chick will become famous merely for her skills in the booth (consummate as they are).

A graduate of The Scratch Academy, where she trained under DJ Immortal, the Miami-born vegan grew up listening to "gospel, jazz, psychedelic, funk, and folk," yet it was instrumentalists such as Herbie Hancock, David Sanborn, Spyro Gyra, and the Yellowjackets from which she says she found her earliest inspiration. And though Inga's bio claims her style runs from ambient, melodic house, psychedelic, and trip-hop through funk, soul, and R&B, in person she states it's really "anything that causes people to say, 'What the hell is that?'"

Mostly, though, Ambrosia's fusion of new, old, and unexpected is meant "to help people relax and reach a higher state of equilibrium." It is, if you will, a music of deeper meaning and higher consciousness, an elevated soundtrack for our wild lives. Sure, she'll pull tracks out of any shaman's hat, but Inga insists the simple beauty of something such as Sala Santa Cecilia (a collaboration between sometime Sparklehorse Christian Fennesz and Japanese composer Ryuichi Sakamoto) works everywhere.

And in her case, everywhere really does mean everywhere, from all the more enlightened galleries in town to any vegetarian eatery with speakers. It also includes hot spots such as The Vagabond, Circa 28, and The Standard, as well as — get this! — Wild Oats (really), where she spins once a month.

It's part of a continuing bright idea called Ambrosia Ambience, which, she says, "was born because [she] wanted to create an environment where she could play and listen to her favorite music, eat her favorite food (vegan), and hang out with her friends, all the while providing positive poetry, conscious music, and a good ambiance to places that promote wellness." It's an ambitious undertaking, all right, but I'm thinkin' if anybody can save this world from its mad self, it's gonna be Inga Ambrosia — one beat at a time.

Inga Ambrosia's current top five:

1. "Namaste," Phisonica

2. "Bolota," Helveth

3. "Versatile Flying Objects," Kalahari Surfers

4. "Contemplation," Josh One

5. "We Live On," Praful

Visit www.ingaambrosia.com.