Group Doueh - Beatte Harab

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Customer reviews
Press release

4...according to our Phil on Thu 18 Nov, 2010.

This is their 3rd album on Sublime Frequencies, guys. You excited yet? You should be! In case you wanted to know what kind of music they make it's Mauritanian folk music. In case you don't know where that is it's near the Sahara so I reckon these guys get well toasty when they're playing live. What with all the lights and that..... I like this a lot. Am only 2 songs in and I already think it's my favourite album by them. To be honest I know nothing of the music from this part of the world so I'm to gonna pretend to sound like I know what I'm on about. I do like a lot of this kind of thing though and it sounds great. Lots of widdly stringed instruments and crazy percussion blended to make an almost otherworldly sound like you've not heard before. The sound is a busy one and it's not a million miles away from the joy of Omar Souleyman but without the insane rave beats. As ever with pretty much everything on the label it's a must have. Sublime Frequencies continue to release some of my favourite records at the moment god bless 'em.

• Sublime Frequencies presents the much-anticipated third LP from Group Doueh.

• Group Doueh's cleanest-sounding record to date.

• Traditional Mauritanian folk music taken to cosmic realms.

• Recorded and compiled by Hisham Mayet.

• Limited edition vinyl pressing with deluxe full-color gatefold jacket.

• "The performance was massively electric ... they must've been focusing on transcendence, sometimes feeling like some mutant Jimi Hendrix. Their guitars were highly rhythmic and their tones mostly sunny, leaving a warm glow to the concrete venue." --Tiny Mix Tapes Sublime Frequencies is honored to be releasing the third LP by the now legendary Group Doueh. Group Doueh have been playing in and around their native Dakhla, in the Western Sahara for over 27 years. Sublime Frequencies' discovery of the group, via a song heard on a radio broadcast in Morocco in 2005 and an exploratory mission in 2006 that landed Hisham Mayet in the group's compound after chasing an overland trail all the way to the Mauritanian border sealed the band's relationship with the label. A successful European tour (with label-mate Omar Souleyman in 2009) ensued and Western audiences were finally able to witness the power of the group's mighty live shows. Doueh's guitar heroics and wife Halima Jakani and Bashiri Touballi's soaring vocal interplay entranced all who were present. This LP showcases a different side to Group Doueh's far-reaching arsenal of sounds. The songs represented on this album adhere to the roots of Saharoui music -- drawing from the classical repertoire of ancestral Mauritanian musical modes. Using the traditional Moorish instruments such as the tinidit (three string Mauritanian lute), ardin (kora-like harp played traditionally by women), tbal (clay drum) and the kass (tea glasses) along with guitar and Korg synth, Group Doueh manage to attain heights of spiritual poetry that this music aspires to convey. Halima's ardin playing and most importantly, her vocal prowess, take this music to blissful and exalted realms. Doueh's tinidit and guitar overlays showcase the technical virtuosity and command that this master has over the region's stringed instruments. This is the music of Group Doueh's roots and the band truly takes these traditions to cosmic heights. Recorded by Group Doueh and Hisham Mayet on location in Dakhla, West Sahara in 2010. This limited edition vinyl LP comes in a beautiful full-color gatefold jacket.

Tracklisting:

: A1. Kar Wazan Abyad, A2. Mawak Lakhaal, A3. Badbada, A4. Beatte Harab, A5. Kar Lakhaal, B1. Waydana, B2. Wazzan Abyad Kar, B3. Lehi Teyilu, B4. Wazan Fagu Doueh, B5. Yadanat Lamayma, B6. Kar Labyad Doueh.

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