The Breakdown
A new project from their long lasting musical connection, poet/vocalist Mohamed Tarek Moussa and producer/multi-instrumentalist Abdelrahman Shaat (aka Mi3raj) emerge with a new album, the intense ‘Callings Of The Owed’ نداءات الموعودين. It’s the pair’s debut for Ruptured Records, that perennial portal which sources the most vital sounds from the Swana region for experimental music afficionados. Previously Shaat and Moussa had worked as Ramaad, an elusive electronica meets spoken word combo, which in true underground spirit first streamed a wave of forward-thinking tracks via Soundcloud around 2011. Moussa then resurfaced as Mi3raj in 2019 with ‘Tilted 360’, a more urgent blast of electronic energy, before an apparent pause. But now we have ‘Callings Of The Owed’ and proof that this long gestation period has been more than fruitful.
The sonic barrage of The Siren opens this impressive return. Sombre piano patterns and looping trumpet flutters loom as Moussa speaks out before a dramatic weight bears down. The processional beats pound while vocals shape shift between chants, incantations and conversations, all creating a passionate surge of warning. It’s a challenging but powerful statement from Mi3raj, a piece of arresting electro- acoustic imagery which references the explosive directness of Jerusalem in my Heart with echoes of the Coil’s post-industrial tuneage.
Yes Mi3raj make serious music but the twists and turns are there for a purpose. The caverns of mood which the partnership create dare you to explore and even get lost. The fittingly titled Medley is a web of complex transitions. From the yearning appeal of the melodic introduction, the hints of a traditional Arabic ballad are soon enveloped in a bewildering tumble of vocal timbres, crooning, appealing, calling out. A Hassell-esque trumpet drone makes for a perfect undercurrent until a wave of big beats and trilling prog-like organ patterns raise the pace. As the percussive pace picks up to a raga-like roll the story finally unfurls to find some resolution.
To think of ‘Callings Of The Owed’ as simply a “spoken word” recording really misses the dynamic interplay between lyrics and sound which Moussa and Shaat create. Voice and music have an alchemic connection in these songs which combine to give the Mi3raj soundscape a clear personality. The combination has the unforgettable impact of the Jason Sharp and Kaie Kellough ‘FYEAR’ album from a couple of years ago. Translation might bring the emotional depth and incisive imagery of Moussa’s poetry even closer for some of us listeners but the pull of his messaging is not dependent on such familiarity. As he purrs, growls, whispers, preaches, speaks and sings within Abdelrahman Shaat’s intuitive sonic foundation, the tension and sense of loss at the heart of ‘Callings Of The Owed’ reaches out. These stories told from the tangle of their home city Cairo resonate to the struggles between tradition, change, loss, love, power and destruction. Mi3raj music brings these confrontations uncomfortably closer.
The pacing of the album is therefore sensitive to any overload. O Gazelle has a more jangling folk sound, a raw ballad which probes the meaning of grace and freedom in a harsh city. Again the trumpet warms the melody as the song swells around strummed guitars, a fulsome combination which echoes Kamilya Jubran and Werner Hasler’s collaborations. There’s a stunning moment here, Moussa pausing on a sudden sharp intake of breath before the piece bursts into synth soaked, zither filled filmic coda. In contrast The Fog takes a near Tricky turn all deep doomy beats, a mist of looping strings plus the eerie swirl of piano and oud. It shifts the mood but never loses your attention.
The album closes with the cathartic The Nightingale Cried Carnage, an expansive two part composition which tussles with destruction. Part One has a Godspeed You! Black Emperor aura about it, pure, spacious guitars and imploring vocals, thickening percussion and harmonium sighs working towards an ominous post rock crescendo. Some calm arrives with Part Two which sees Mi3raj come closest to exploring familiar song structure. After the swathes of drama the rest of the album delivers, this piece feels pared back, a simple eighties electro pulse, a spidery oud and Moussa’s arresting vocal. The confluence of tradition and modernism again flows without turbulence.
‘Callings Of The Owed’ is an album that’s not looking for quick wins. It’s passionate, powerful music made with and demanding dedication. With cutting edge labels like HIZZ and ANBA turning heads and Nadah el Shazly’s fine ‘Laini Tani’ denting The Wire year end list, it feels like Cairo’s experimental scene is on the rise once more…and Mi3raj look set to add to the momentum.
Get your copy of ‘Callings Of The Owed’ نداءات الموعودين by Mi3raj from your local record store or direct from Ruptured Records HERE
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