Posts Tagged ‘Mashrou’ Leila’
The Night
Just saw the Killing‘s season 2 Finale.
Sarah Lund is definitely Copenhagen’s biggest export since Danish Butter Cookies…
And then, the craziest thing happened: I had just finished typing this first sentence when I got a call from Denmark!
Of course when I picked up, I got the all-too familiar sound of a cellphone bouncing in somebody’s pocket. That’s what you get when you’re name starts with an A and you’re the first number in everybody’s phonebook.
But that was a sweet mistake indeed…
Transition: The picture illustrating this post is DR Byen by night and I had ended my previous post with a link to Mashrou’ Leila‘s latest EP.
Most of the people reading this blog know that Leila isn’t a girl and the band’s name should be understood as “overnight project”.
And then I remembered the first few lines of one of Morphine‘s best tracks.
You’re the night, Lilah. A little girl lost in the woods.
You’re a folk tale, the unexplainable
You’re a bedtime story. The one that keeps the curtains closed.
I hope you’re waiting for me cause I can’t make it on my own.
I can’t make it on my own.
“The Night” (Mediafire link)
Turns out, Mark Sandman was probably also playing on ليلة / ليلى
Of course, my tired brain followed that convoluted hyperlink with a logical musical leap to Eric Clapton’s “Layla”.
Not the unplugged one.
No lyrics equating Pattie Boyd to Majnun’s Layla.
Just the epic part that starts halfway though the original version.
The instumental Scorsese used in “Goodfellas”.
And that scene transported me back to Beirut in the early nineties where a third Leila appeared, followed by a group of hunters.
Yeah I know, you’re saying it can’t be: he’s posting corny Cabrel songs!!!
But listen to it: Leïla et les chasseurs (Mediafire Link)
Leïla, si tu savais les yeux qu’elle a
Quand elle voit s’approcher les chasseurs
[...]
Elle rêve d’un fragile, d’un fou
Qui l’embrasse au quinzième rendez-vous
Qui tremble en lui prenant la main
Et surtout qui ne dise rien
In my teenage years, it contributed to some of the most naive and persistent theories on love I’ve ever come up with.
Anyway…
Hi hi CPH!
See you in my next life!
Habibi
Just finished reading Craig Thompson’s gorgeous graphic novel, “Habibi”.
I was scared I’d be disappointed because of the exotic looking subject and how much I love “Blankets”.
Don’t be put off by the cover or the dots under the “B”s: it’s a mind-blowing labour of love and – … I’ll just leave it at that.
For more info on Habibi:
Official site
Review
Slideshow
Craig Thompson’s Blog
And here’s the quote from Thompson’s interviews that justified and triggered this post (’cause yes, for the time being this is still only a music blog…):
“There’s a description of Arabic calligraphy as ‘music for the eyes, and that’s how I felt about it from when I first saw it. The musicality of it, the movement, the flow.”
I immediately heard Soapkills’ cover of Asmahan’s “Ya Habibi Taala” in my head:
Habibi (Live in Circus, 24 June 1999) (Mediafire Link)
And yes, Dodola does look a bit like Yasmine.
And this is where the plot thickens: Habibi is the missing link between Beirut’s various alternative scenes through time!
Balkan Beat Box – Habibi min Zaman (Mediafire Link)
Forget where they come from, the intro sounds so much like the Incompetents’ “Bullets Gently Dancing Over My Head” (2008)
And of course, in 2011 Mashrou’ Leila released another “Habibi” on their latest EP, El Hal Romancy (Official free download).
