Apr 14
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Stamp the Wax - A Brief History of South Yemeni Music (Mixed By El Khat) (2022)
Listen on MIXCLOUD
Each style has its own uniqueness but in the Yemeni one the feel of the beat is very different than in other Arabic styles. It has an emphasised layback, the drums are sometimes played on metal plates or other copper objects and the Oud almost escorts the drum section. The focus is around rhythm and much less about solos or virtuosic vocals.
So El Khat is releasing a new album... Great news!!! They were the first band I saw after lockdown last year... It felt so good finally witnessing live music again...
El Khat - Saadia Jefferson - Tel Aviv band reworks Yemeni folk songs (Batov Records)
Saadia Jefferson is a glorious act of vandalism on Yemeni traditions led by inventor, carpenter, musician and composer Eyal El Wahab. Dismantling lyrics, melodies and compositions from Yemeni folk songs, El Khat delve into uncharted sonic territory updating Yemen's ancient culture. Using an orchestra of instruments old and new, many repurposed from junk objects and turned into instruments that sound similar to traditional Arabic and North African lutes and percussion, Tel Aviv based El Khat have imagined an indelible stamp of polyphonic, harmony soaked, pan-Arabic braindance. Hover over the tracks and you can pick out certain influences such as Omar Souleyman and dabkefolk characterised by trance-inducing chants (Wahed Mozawej), the searing Ethiopique organ of Mulatu Astatke (Ala Jina Nuhayiykum), and the unashamedly sing-along choruses of Bowie or McCartney (Balagh Al Achbaab), but the over-arching concept within Saadia Jefferson is Eyal's sense of identity, or lack of it, as a Yemeni Jew living in Tel Aviv. The album is the rewards of a self-imposed mission to discover Eyal El Wahab's Yemeni roots.
“Ya Raiyat / يا راعيات” - El Khat القات
“Ptiha / مفاتحة” - El Khat القات
El Khat - Ya Raiyat - Yemeni folk song performed on DIY orchestra; full abum out in November from Batov Records
‘Ya Raiyat’ is the product of a traditional Yemeni folk song, dismantled and reformed by El Khat and Yemeni inventor, carpenter and music producer Eyal El Wahab. Recorded in Eyal's backstreet studio in Tel Aviv filled with mics, speakers and a lot of junk much of which has been repurposed and turned into instruments of every persuasion. Sung in Yemeni Arabic, it features a series of handmade instruments including the self-named 'Kearat', a large steel bowl with a piece of wood, some nails and screws and 6 strings sounding like a Banjo-Bass as well as a fuel plastic container and olive oil containers. There’s a Pancello as well, which is played with a bow like a cello made out of a saucepan, broken shelf and rope. Khat is the natural plant chewed in Yemen and across the Arabic world.