Amira Saqati - Destination Halal

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Artist: Amira Saqati

Title: Destination Halal

Released: October, 2005

 

Tracklist:

 

1.Madiniti

2.Sabra Dima

3.Marrakech X-press

4.Habibati

5.Galbi Tabe

6.Aboun Salehoun

7.Sant tes Mots

8.Oumayama

9.Felestin

10.Hel Aeynik

11.Imane

12.The Cobra Dance

13.Zouak

14.Psy Habibi

 

"Amira Saqati" is Joussuf El Mejjad and Pat Jabbar. They've previously released two albums, and I guess this is sort of a comeback, as the last one came out as far back as in 1995. This was my first encounter with their music, and it's ceirtanly a different release - it's nothing like most chillout releases comming out. If you want to compare this to something else in the "scene"(God - I hate using that word!) I think Toires would be a good place to start, even though this is more driven by analouge instruments and perhaps more distinctly "arab" in it's musical expression. Lets sweep by Marrakech and see how the tracks feel...

 

01: Madiniti

The opener of the album is ceirtanly not my favourite, but it has it's moments. First off, many of these tracks have arabic-style male vocals. I don't speak a word arabic - So I can't really coment on the content of the lyrics. They do however work quite well as an instrument on some of these pieces, but on "Madiniti" I find it a bit over the top.

 

02: Sabra Dima

Sabra Dima opens with a steady, laid back beat - Nothing too complicated. This is followed by some pretty majestic and varied orchestral work. Lots of different instruments take part in setting the mood here. The vocals are also much more laidback then on "Madiniti", and here they really work wonders. One of my favourites on the album!

 

03: Marrakech X-press

Now for the albums first attempt at an upbeat track. This is 4/4 dance-music, and it actually starts pretty promising with some tribal influences. After a few seconds however a female vocal kicks in, and from then on and out, this track is nothing but torture in it's purest form. I mean - come on! I don't like to be harsh, but this is pure torture to my ears. If you're familiar with the eurovision songcontest and actually like alot of the stuff in there - this is for you! The rest - skip this... Aaaargh!

 

04: Habibati

After the traumatizing experience of "Marracech X-press" this is a nice change of pace. An almost dubby beat move this track along together with various instruments creating a feeling and atmosphere filled with eastern mysticism.

 

05: Galbi Tabe

"Galbi Tabe" sounds very organic, not very programmed at all - except for parts of the beatsection. I find this track very exciting - it reminds me alot of the way the legendary "dead can dance" sounds when they're at their most oriental. The male arabic vocal is prominent here as well, but instead of drawing attention away from the great music(as on Madiniti) it just adds to the general feeling here. Wonderful!

 

06:Aboun Salehoun

More electronic now, breakbeatoriented with extensive use of synths together with the blend of instruments that your ears should have adjusted to by now. The synthesized melodyline between 2:18 and 2:53 is extremely close to being classified as utter cheeze, but luckily it's not overdone.

 

07: Sant tes Mots

This track is...well....weird. It goes in all kinds of different directions. At times the beat could fit perfectly in to a (very slow) progressive house track. The melodies also go in alot of different directions. Circus-music, flamenco and offcourse the oriental arabian influencs are present. Horns, guitars, and various spaced out sounds create a nice vibe. Listening to this almost makes me forget that the first snow of the season came earlier this week. But only almost..

 

08: Oumayama

"Oumayama" is one of the more simple tracks on the album. Some string-instruments, some very light drumming and a flute together with the typical arabic vocals. The track is not to bad, actually, but I find that the vocals here steal to much of the attention. I guess it would make more sense if I understood what he was singing about.

 

09: Felestin

Felestin is another track that could easily end up in the same category as "Marracech X-press". It's an upbeat track, and it has alot of vocals. Luckilly the boys are able to avoid the traps here, and it ends up as a pretty cool piece of music. There are some acid-like basslines here and there and they work wonders together with the more traditional instuments. Towards the end there's also som arabic rap of some sort. Nice track.

 

10: Hel Aeynik

"Hel Aeynik" is the second attemt at creating a four to the floor dancetrack, and it's alot better than the first one. Tribal influences and a steady blend of sounds create an overall groovy experience. The verse sung by a female vocalist bothers me somewhat, but the singing isn't everpresent here, so it's no big deal.

 

11: Imane

The first minute and a half of this track sounds like it could have been part of the soundtrack of some mid-60's western movie. Some spacey sytnth-sounds however gives it away, and when the semi-mechanical beat enters this sounds distinctly post year 2000. The track isn't bad - not at all - but the vocals just ruin it for me. Just like on "Madiniti" it steals attention from an otherwise very nice track.

 

12: The Cobra Dance

You know that wise old man sitting down at the marketsquare making a cobra dance out of a basket? Well neither do I - But if I had known him, and if I had actually been to that market, I'm pretty sure it would sound something like this. There's a lot of that "flute"(Whats that called?), together vith various sources of noise and sounds. Children singing, chanting, electric guitars, synths and atmospheres. It may seem a bit chaotic and random, but it sounds really good.

 

13: Zouak

Zouak is a great track! It actually manages to fuse the arabian sounds with reggea vibes, electric guitars and some spacey synths - and my God it works! Th evocals here sound like some kind of dialouge between a man and a woman - but I don't know that, ofcourse. If summer was comming up I'd probably play this alot at the beach. Luckilly it works in the coutch as well!

 

14: Psy Habibi

To finish the album we actually get a trancey, pretty psychedelic track. It's got some deep bass going on - and the vocals aren't perticularly central in here. It's not at all like the rest of the album, but it's definently enjoyable in this context.

 

Final remarks:

You can say many things about an album such as this. Two or three of the tracks here sound really annoying to me. I don't know if this is due to the fact that I'm a northern europen kid used to ceirtan sounds, or if the vocals actually are too present in some tracks. For me, 77 minutes of this stuff is also a bit to much, and I find my self enjoying this album in bits and pieces rather than as a journey. That being said - most of this album is a pleasure listening to. Don't worry about the trends, the formulas you're used to or what the chill-dj's spin. Most of this stuff is powerfull, filled with emotion and seems to be comming from the hearts of the creators. That alone is enough to make it a special release.

 

Tomas(Psychedelic Mustache)

 

Get it here:

psyshop

amboworld

discobole

 

Roadmap: www.sonic-energy.net