Mo7it Al-Mo7it from Jerusalem In My Heart is a surprising and very enjoyable experience. Led by Montreal-based Radwan Ghazi Moumneh the album fuses contemporary electronics with traditional Arabic music. And despite being in existence for eight years now, the core trio are only now committing their work to an album format having preferred highly artistic public performances for the majority of their existence.

There never seems to be a set formula to this album with some of the songs purely a capella, some more electronic and others featuring more traditional instruments in non-traditional arrangements. The end result is a gentle merging of styles and cultures into a form that becomes much more than the sum of its parts.

Songs like ‘Koll lil-mali7ati fi al-khimar al-aswadi’ ,’Yudaghdegh al-ra3ey wala al-ghanam’ and ‘Amanem ‘ are the most completely constructed songs on the album blending electronics (and traditional instruments in the latter’s case) and Arabic vocals in three very distinct ways. While ‘3andalib al-furat’, ‘Ya dam3et el-ein 3’ and ‘Ko7l el-ein, 3oumian el-ein ‘ are based more around traditional instrumentation without vocals.

The band’s style is perhaps best summed up by the cryptic style of the track list that uses colloquial or “mobile” Arabic which substitutes numbers for words rather than traditional text or a purely anglicised font. The effect is both enchanting and unsettling as the beauty of the traditional instruments is counterbalanced by the colder and somewhat harsher electronic elements. When combined with the prayer-like vocals the whole atmosphere becomes darker yet so compelling. The re-occurring sound of bird song ties the whole album together as it creates a sense of journey, moving from open spaces into closed ones and back again.

The production and mixing do vary in its effects giving each song a unique flavour. Rather than having a certain sound for the album some tracks are cleaner and others a lot dirtier in style. This may annoy some people with its inconsistency, however it really emphasises the emotional heart of the songs to a greater degree while also creating a sense of uncertainty at what is coming next.

The mixing of Arabic and Western styles isn’t really all that new by any stretch of the imagination. However Jerusalem In My Heart still manage to create something that really stands out and challenges the listener.

8/10

Sean M. Palfrey

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