#5100, Arabic and Farsi Electronica
Hear Arabic and Farsi singing married to contemporary electronic production in works from Egyptian singer Nadah El Shazly, Tunisian singer Emel, and Lebanese singer Yasmin Hamdan.
Hear Egyptian-born, Montreal-based producer, vocalist, composer, and actor Nadah El Shazly’s hazy cinematic dream pop-meets-industrial soundscape from her latest, Laini Tani. On the album, there’s co-production from 3phaz, harp lines from longtime collaborator Sarah Pagé, along with layers of voice, percussion, ethereal strings, abrasive synths and electronic processing as El Shazly melds both the modern and traditional, (RA.co).
Then, hear Lebanese-born, Paris-based singer-songwriter and producer, Yasmine Hamdan who weaves traditional Arabic singing from pan-Arabic roots and pop and poetic lyrics, together with electronica, soul and guitar melodies, and the sounds of with electronics (Bandcamp). There’s also music from Tunisian-American artist and activist Emel Mathlouthi, under her EMEL moniker from her 2024 album MRA, “woman”. “Like the album title, many of the tracks were named for Arabic words that sum up or otherwise symbolize the ongoing fight to break free from the shackles imposed on us by restrictive governments and suffocating gender norms”, (Kim March, Flood Magazine). Hear the track, “Souty” which means “my voice” in Arabic. “It’s a tribute to both the voice as the most beautiful, delicate organ and our most powerful weapon at once,” (EMEL, writing on each track in Flood Magazine).
Also, listen to music by Beirut-born, Amsterdam-based music producer, singer, songwriter, filmmaker, and sound designer, Toni Geitani from 2026’s Wahj (“Radiance”). The “experimental Arabic, electronic, avant-pop, dark ambient, and industrial” music contains “layālī vocalizations, repurposed regional samples, processed classical instruments, synthesizers” and rejects the notion of defeat – instead awakening resistance, possibility, and hope, (Bandcamp). That, and more. - Caryn Havlik
Program #5100, Arabic and Farsi Electronica (First aired 1/27/26)
ARTIST: Yasmine Hamdan
WORK: Hon [1:59]
RECORDING: Hon
SOURCE: Crammed Discs
INFO: https://yasminehamdan.bandcamp.com/track/yasmine-hamdan-hon
ARTIST: Emel
WORK: Souty [3:16]
RECORDING: MRA
SOURCE: Little Human
INFO: https://emel.bandcamp.com/album/mra https://bfan.link/mra-1
ARTIST: Toni Geitani
WORK: Hawa [3:16]
RECORDING: Wahj
SOURCE: Toni Geitani
INFO: https://tonigeitani.bandcamp.com/album/wahj
ARTIST: Yasmine Hamdan
WORK: Hon [4:36]
RECORDING: Hon
SOURCE: Crammed Discs
INFO: https://yasminehamdan.bandcamp.com/track/yasmine-hamdan-hon
ARTIST: Nadah El Shazly
WORK: Ghorzetein [4:21]
RECORDING: Laini Tani
SOURCE: One Little Independent Records
INFO: https://nadahelshazly.lnk.to/lainitani | https://nadahelshazly.bandcamp.com/album/laini-tani
ARTIST: Alif
WORK: Dars Min Kama Sutra (A Lesson from Kama Sutra) [6:40]
RECORDING: Aynama-Rtama
SOURCE/INFO: alifmusic.bandcamp.com
ARTIST: Sussan Deyhim & Richard Horowitz
WORK: Botachine [5:35]
RECORDING: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38mEoYN_Ng0
SOURCE: unreleased
INFO: http://sussandeyhim.com
ARTIST: Azam Ali
WORK: Once More, All Is Green, Feat. Efren Lopez [7:43]
RECORDING: Once More, All Is Green
SOURCE: Terrestrial Lane Productions, Inc
INFO: https://azamali.bandcamp.com/track/once-more-all-is-green
ARTIST: Nadah El Shazly
WORK: Laini Tani [5:06]
RECORDING: Laini Tani
SOURCE: One Little Independent Records
INFO: https://nadahelshazly.lnk.to/lainitani | https://nadahelshazly.bandcamp.com/album/laini-tani
ARTIST: Mercan Dede Secret Tribe
WORK: Nar-i Cem [3:13]
RECORDING: Nar
SOURCE: Doublemoon
INFO: Available at Amazon.com, AppleMusic, YouTube, Spotify
