Majoun - review

You like Eastern music? Yeah, I hear a lot of people saying that. I'm always curious as to what kind of Eastern music. For some people, hearing a Cheb Khaled radio-hit seems to qualify them as fans of 'world music' whatever that term ever meant. But what is Eastern music? Is it as simple as music from the East? No it can't be, because music that comes from the East comes with many different clothes and styles. Is it Eastern music that's catered for Western ears? Is it traditional folk-music? Is it, dare I say it, Islamic? Do you have any concept of just how hard it is to hear pure, modern music that hasn't been pre-catered for any kind of specific audience? Music that simply exists in our midst? This is one such album, it exists, not a lot of people have heard it, and those that have probably find themselves so breathe-taken that they'd be unable to tell you much.

It starts off as stunning electronica. Richard Horowitz proves himself to be a true master of mixing and timing, as well as providing a truly original backing for the invasive and bullish vocals of Deyhim. She is rarely quiet, rarely out of sight, when her vocals are not intense and bold, they may soar, and glide, but even this they do with power and presence. The title-track Majoun unravels into one of the most interesting Eastern, experimental musical hybrids I have ever heard, with Deyhim's multi-layered vocals all running into and over each other as they create melodies you haven't heard before.

Whorl on the Mount of Moon is a 10-minute masterpiece, classical, ambient, like the best music it defies categorisation, but to have it affecting your ears only inspires. The expert ways in which Horowitz treats her voice allows it to merge perfectly with the exciting music, and never to overtake it. Deyhims voice would bully Bjork's voice if the two came across each other in a playground, while it's equally sensitive and vulnerable as the Icelandic queens, it also offers so much more exotic power and weight that can only refresh your ears.

Heavy this undeniably is though, much more emotionally involved and draining than any of Deyhim's more recent work, and yet infintely more focused and musically cohesive than any of her more wild and experimental works prior to this hidden gem. Discover it for yourself and see whether it resonates with the feelings in your mind, then maybe you might get an idea of whether 'this kind' of Eastern music is really for you or not.

Y.Misdaq, 04 Nov 2003

-click here to hear a brilliant and in-depth interview with Sussan Deyhim, including a lot of her music