Record Reviews

RASM ALMASHAN ~ YEMENIA SOLITON 365 (Barcode: 5901571093659) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2018 - 2019 Released: 2020 This is the debut album as a leader by Polish (of Yemeni origin) vocalist Rasm AlmashanFind albums by this artist (a.k.a. Rasm Al-MashanFind albums by this artist), recorded with an excellent group of musicians: percussionist Adeb ChamounFind albums by this artist, oud player Mateusz SzemrajFind albums by this artist, drummer Pawel DobrowolskiFind albums by this artist, bassist Bartozzi WojciechowskiFind albums by this artist and keyboardist Adam LemanczykFind albums by this artist. Saxophonist Grzech PiotrowskiFind albums by this artist, who is the musical producer of the album, guests on three tracks and violinist Stanislaw SlowinskiFind albums by this artist guests on one track. The album presents nine songs, six of which are composed by Almashan, two are co-composed by her and Piotrowski and one is a traditional Yemenite song, made world-famous by Israeli singer Ofra HazaFind albums by this artist as "Im Nin´alu", who also had Yemenite roots. Most of the lyrics (In Yemeni Arabic and English) were also written by Almashan, except for "Im Nin´alu" which has lyrics in Hebrew written by Rabbi Shalom ShabaziFind albums by this artist, and two songs with lyrics by the great Yemeni singer Abu Bakr Salem BelfqihFind albums by this artist. The music is an amalgam of Pop and Middle Eastern / African Folklore elements with a strong Jazz-World Fusion accompaniment, excellently put together and very entertaining. Melodically and rhythmically the music is mostly quite European, but the arrangements are strongly influenced by Ethnically sounding ornamentations and Jazzy improvisations. For a person like me, who is surrounded by Middle Eastern music every day, this music does not sound "authentic" enough, but for European listeners this might work out perfectly, especially in view of the fact that Middle Eastern scales and phrasing can sound very outlandish to a European ear. However, this music sounds great regardless of its distance from authenticity, thanks to the great melodies and superb performances by all the participants, mixing perfect doses of European melody and exotic Middle Easter spices. Almashan is an excellent vocalist, whom I have been lucky to hear live many times, with a wide range, great sensitivity and wonderful musicality. The Jazzy accompaniment suits her perfectly and personally I love most the songs on which she lets go of the strict melody and ventures into more improvised passages, which are the absolute highlight of this album. Listeners who love Pop songs with strong Ethnic elements and Jazzy accents, similar to the music of the lamented Ofra Haza, should be delighted by this album from start to finish, as it is full of great playing and superb vocal parts, offering new musical layers with each repeated listening session and bridges Cultures in a most accessible and heartfelt manner. Warmly recommended!

Updated: 05/03/2020Posted: 05/03/2020

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