John Metcalfe announces new album and reveals first track ‘Xylem’
Tree is set for release on vinyl, CD and digitally via Real World Records on 22 September 2023.
Fri, 26 May 23
Riz Ahmed samples Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan on new album ‘The Long Goodbye’
Riz Ahmed, the British actor, rapper and activist, has just released his second solo album, which features a sample of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's 'Allah Hoo Allah Hoo' in the opening track, 'The Breakup (Shikwa)'.
Known for roles in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and award-winning HBO series The Night Of, Ahmed’s new album The Long Goodbye is a turbulent exploration of identity and belonging. On ‘The Break Up (Shikwa)’, he uses a romantic relationship as a detailed extended metaphor for life in post-Brexit Britain.
The sample of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan on the opening track of the album is lifted from a live WOMAD recording of ‘Allah Hoo Allah Hoo’. Nusrat and the qawwal ‘Ali Ali Dam Ali Ali’ are also mentioned on the track ‘Can I Live’.
Taking cues from Sufi devotional music and poetry, Ahmed explains that he wanted to hold up a mirror to the rising tide of division in the land he calls home.
“It’s a breakup album, but with your country. I wanted to make something that lets people into the feeling of this heartbreak, the anger, the denial, the acceptance, the realisation, self-esteem and self-love.“
The Long Goodbye is out now on Mongrel Records, and is accompanied by a short film of the same name.
Featured release
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Released 23 July 2019
A remarkable record of a magical event that changed the perception of Sufi music to a wider audience and set Nusrat on a path to international recognition of his genius. The power and beauty of Nusrat’s voice comes rushing back through the years and lifts us up to the ecstatic heights of Sufi expression.
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Further reading
Afro-futurist sensations Onipa announce forthcoming album Off The Grid; share ‘No Commando’
The album features an impressive cast of collaborators including Moonchild Sanelly and David Walters
Wed, 26 April 23
Track of the day: ‘Steal’ by Bob Holroyd. Remixed by Luca Bacchetti
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