karkhana
bitter balls
ALBUM COVER
description
"Bitter Balls" showcases the incredible progression and artistic flow undergone by the Karkhana septet in the 5 years since its inception. Four new finely tuned compositions of crystal clear and deep, dark, distorted unrock – electric and acoustic. The cross between old school and contemporary oriental free-jazz sounds and western improv-prog. Ripe fruits of love and wisdom.
info
1 – Huli Huli – 09:52
2 – Al Sal3awa – 12:02
3 – Containment – 09:14
4 – Rock Farock – 06:18
All tracks composed, arranged, performed and produced by Karkhana
Umut Çaglar: zurna, guimbri, percussion
Tony Elieh: electric bass
Mazen Kerbaj: trumpet, electronics
Maurice Louca: organ
Sharif Sehnaoui: electric guitar
Sam Shalabi: electric guitar, oud
Michael Zerang: drums, percussion
Recorded by Fadi Tabbal and Anthony Sahyoun at Inter Arts Center, Malmö, Sweden, on 12-14 January 2018
Mixed by Fadi Tabbal at Tunefork Studios, Beirut, Lebanon
Mastered by Harris Newman at Greymarket Mastering, Montreal, Canada
Design by Studio Safar and Mazen Kerbaj
CD version produced by Annihaya in Lebanon
Vinyl version produced by Unrock
bandcamp
Press
Excerpts
With some of the Middle East’s most experimental instrumentalists making up the boisterous band’s roster, Karkhana’s sound is unique, to say the least. Comprised of Lebanon’s Sharif Sehnaoui, Mazen Kerbaj and Tony Elieh, Egypt’s Sam Shalabi and Maurice Louca, Turkey’s Umut Caglar and American percussionist Michael Zerang, anyone familiar with any of these artists will know that their coming together means a whole lot of experimental and even improvised sounds are bound to follow.
Bitter Balls, released on vinyl on German label Unrock and on CD and digitally by Annihaya Records, is a progressive rock and folk offering that combines the experimental nature of all the band members for a jaunty yet rhythmic musical journey that manages to still pay homage to the structure and sounds of Middle Eastern folk.
[Scenenoise]
Słowo "supergrupa" bywa nadużywane w stosunku do wielu zespołów. W przypadku septetu Karkhana – który podejmuje wątki bliskowschodnie i opowiada o nich za pomocą muzyki transowej i improwizowanej – nazwa zespołu powinna być używana jako jego synonim.
[Poskie Radio – Jakub Knera]