Arabic Folk

Esmerine – Dalmak

Whilst in Istanbul for an artist residency, the adventurous Montreal chamber rock group recorded Dalmak with an ensemble of Turkish musicians, augmenting their core sound of cello, marimba, and drums with the saz, darbuka, bendir and several other instruments used in Turkish and Arabic folk music. Epic, modal themes emerge from watery beds of minimalistic polyrhythms and suspenseful string arrangments. While often sombre, mournful or foreboding, the musi seems driven by a collective sense of spiritual determination and hope.

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Embryo’s Reise

Recorded September 1978 – May 1979 in Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, & Germany

Style: Free-Psych, Krautrock, Prog, Jazz-Rock, Raga Rock, Arabic Folk

Vibes: Adventure, Communal, Triumphant, Exploratory, Warm, Psychedelic, Bluesy, Playful, Energetic, Spiritual

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Land of Kush – Against the Day

Land of Kush’ Against the Day is a passionate, adventurous & rebellious masterpiece of mystical electrified big-band compositions, inspired by the surreal novel of the same name by Thomas Pynchon. Bilocal oudist & composer Osama Shalabi (Montreal/Cairo) bravely leads this 20+ member orchestra through a progressive suite of long form arrangements that synthesize sounds of spiritual jazz, Arabic folk & experimental rock into a sound that’s overwhelmingly unique and gripping.

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Land of Kush – Sand Enigma

Style: Avant-Garde Big Band, Arabic/Egyptian Folk, Psychedelic Jazz

Vibe: Intense, Sombre, Cathartic, Psychedelic, Complex, Ritualistic, Communal

Musical Qualities: Dense, Progressive, Dissonant, Acoustic, Percussive

Instrumentation: Santur, Upright Bass, Piano, Saxophones, Vocals, Percussion, Drums, Clarinet, Flute, Strings (Violin, Viola, Cello), Keyboards, Synthesizer, lap Steel Guitar, Electronics, Harp

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Strunz & Farah – Mosaico

“World Music” is often a cheap umbrella term for non-Eurocentric music, but when acoustic guitar shredders Jorge Strunz and Ardeshir Farah, from Costa Rica and Iran respectively, bring together a Cuban rhythm section, South Indian violinist, and Kuwaiti guitarist, the music they create truly does have a sense of cultural unity deserving of the term.
For fans of flamenco, Arabic folk, and acoustic guitar virtuosity

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Jerusalem in My Heart – If He Dies, If If If If If If

At the core of these electrouacoustic Arabic folk songs lies expressive vocals and the buzuk, a fretted lute which Radwan Ghazi Moumneh plays with a near religious determination. While these instruments are played nakedly and organically, it is the production and recording that really exhibits the experimental and atmospheric nature of the music. Acoustic instruments are re-sampled and processed to create granular and rhythmic accompaniment, while waves of white noise, synths and field recordings are used to adorn and enhance the emotional twists and turns of the raw acoustic performances.

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