Al-Qasar

When continents collide, they make a thunderous sound. Arabian fuzz, they term it, a vision that’s brazenly electric and deeply connected to its roots. Al-Qasar is a collective which was started Between Paris and Los Angeles by producer Thomas Attar. The musicians came together, from France, Turkey, Lebanon, Morocco, Algeria, Egypt, and the United States. Bass, drums and percussion create an irresistible groove, while electric saz and guitars build a wailing wall above, with ecstatic Arabic, Turkish, Bambara vocals inspired by history as it strides into the future. Like a psychedelic celebration on the dancefloor, it bristles with the kind of deep energy that makes Al-Qasar sound like the world’s most dangerous wedding band. Al-Qasar’s magnetic pull drew big names from around the world, such as The Dead Kennedys’ Jello Biafra, Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth, Sudanese innovator Alsarah, Algerian oud virtuoso Mehdi Haddab (Speed Caravan), Malian legends Cheick Tidiane Seck and Mamani Keita. Al-Qasar’s music never wavers, pulling from the hypnotic roots of North African trance and threading it into a fabric with the elaborate beauty of Arabic scales and the shock and thrill of rock’n’roll.