Disco | Boogie 390 Items

Al Massrieen: Disco, Funk and modernized Arabic Pop from Egypt

In the beginning of Habibi Funk, our search was focussed on vinyl records. Around a year ago though, we got to the point where we realized that it became substantially harder to discover music, that we enjoyed and hadn’t heard before. It became apparent that it was time to start looking for other formats. Cassette tapes were the obvious alternative. These were introduced in the arabic world around the late 1970s. In some countries they took over a bit earlier, in others a bit later, but eventually they pushed the vinyl format out of the market in the 1980s. In Egypt this trend already even started in the late 1970s.

Al Massrieen was one of the first bands I learned about once I discovered the tape format for myself. They were really popular in Egypt in the 1970s and the more of their music I found on either tapes or Arabic pirate mp3 sites, the more I was becoming a fan. Only very few bands from the region can match the band’s versatility as well as their strive for innovation. Hany Shenoda is the man behind the Al Massrieen band. He is a reknown figure of the Egyptian music scene and has worked with everyone from Abdel Halim Hafez to Mohamed Mounir. Al Massrieen was his attempt to introduce his ideas of modernizing Egyptian music, heavily encouraged by Naguib Mahfouz (Egypt's only winner of the Nobel Price for literature) after discussing his ideas with him.
Al Massrieen's sound goes from lush disco like “Sah” to psych rock like “Horreya” or incredible jazz fused pop on songs such as “Edba Mn Gded”. I was shocked to realize the band seemed to be hardly known outside Egypt, even though I feel they're at least on the same level as Ahmed Fakroun. An relative obscurity which I largely attribute to the fact that their releases never have been pressed on vinyl (apart from a Greece best of LP which wasn’t a strong compilation of the group’s songs). One way or another it felt like this band and especially their composer, band leader and overall brain Hany Shenoda was in need to get some recognition outside of Egypt. The release is fully licensed from the band and comes with an extensive booklet with liner notes, interviews and unseen photos.

Considering the incredibly wide range of styles adopted by Piero Umiliani during his career, it will come as no surprise for you to know that he also produced disco. At that time in Italy disco had still an exotic appeal and was considered apt to accompany a genre of movies that was at once erotic and comic. “Discomusic” is some sort of a white version of a sound that is inherently black, a unique record within Umiliani‘s discography. The track “Discomania” became popular as the closing theme of 90° Minuto, a famous Italian football TV show.

The last and final instalment of the brilliant mighty fire unissued reels. And again two beautiful sides straight from the pen of Melton Bolton. These tracks were sitting around before they cut a deal with Elektra records. Melton Bolton has been a prolific player and musician for over 40 years. Writing for Motown plus a host of other record labels.
The label salvaged the reels, cleaned them up a bit. Nothings perfect in this music world. But the chance to give these songs a new vehicle gives Super Disco Edits always a great pleasure.

Türküola’s new vinyl release of Kayalarınoğlu 2023 is based on Barış Manço & Kurtalan Ekspres’ 1975 album “2023”. On the other hand you can hear tracks like “Estergon Kalesi”, “Ben Bilirim Ben Bilirim” as well. “Estergon Kalesi” was the latest single released before the 2023 LP and “Ben Bilirim” was the A side of the single which contained single version “2023” at the flipside. In addition to these additional tracks you can hear the unedited version of “Kolbastı” first time on vinyl.
2023 was Manço’s most experimental album which contained a lot of electronic sounds of analogue synthesizers and also early drum machines. The track “Kayaların Oğlu-2023” has a touch of early electronic music of its age just like Jean Michael Jarre and Chezlaw Niemen. “Ben Bilirim” is a power funky song while the band’s experiments in Baykoca Destanı drives us to concept albums of pogressive rock groups such as Genesis, Yes, Renaissance etc. You can hear moody Anatolian Rock ballads in “Uzun İnce Bir Yoldayım” and “Yol Verin ağalar Beyler”. In both tracks you can hear a powerful rhythm section formed of two drummers and one percussionist.
The cover art also reflects the esthetic approach of Türküola during 1970s and 1980s. After the accurate reissues of 2023 by different companies, Türküola gives a new path to interpret the album once again but this time in a new vision.

L.A. Nights, their new EP on Hi & Fly is a new milestone in the band discography, setting it to a next level. The title track is a cover of the famous Yasuko Agawa’s track (itself based on Light of the world’s “London Town”) inspired by strong Zapp and West-Coast influences. Fat basslines, tight horn riffs and funky talkbox parts galore!
“Break Droppin’” and “The Battle” are infectious medleys played by the band with an extended line-up including extra brass, strings and percussions. In “Breaks Droppin’”, you’ll find a carefully selected mix of cuts, ranging from the Hawaiian Hal Bradbury’s “You win, I Lose”, to Julius Brockington’s “This Feeling (Freedom)”, passing through CTI and other sampler friendly tracks.
“The Battle” is a b-boy style up-tempo selection, mixing Latin influences with some classic battle cuts and evolving to a Disco finish, with a cover of the great Brothers’ break “Under the Skin”. It is 10’ long, the beats & percussions are heavy and the extended band is in top condition. It won’t let some rest to your feet for sure!
Last but not least, it's also the comeback of Hi & Fly, a French diggers' reference since 2000. So, one reason more to have a listen… Enjoy!

Melbourne's M5K...where G-Funk, Modern Funk, Boogie, House, and Hip Hop all intersect to give you the most bang imaginable (via real synthesizers and drum machines). West Coast Lead Lines meet Detroit Sub Bass Frequencies; Raw Drum Machine Stabs Snap and Crack while Lush Chords flow from Analog and Digital synths. Ultimately, deep vibes are created, arranged, and mixed down into undisputed dance-floor bangers, making real thick and juicy jams for the ears and bodies of party-goers. The "Absolutely Real" EP on Hobo Camp Records bangs out 5 tracks of Raw Street-Level business (featuring Midnight Runners on the track "Let's Try It Out"), straight from M5K's Melbourne Studio right to your sound-system.
Instruments used: tr808, SCI Drumtraks, Oberheim DX, Roland JV1080, JX 3P, JX8P, Juno 106, Juno Alpha, Fender Rhodes MK1, Polymoog, RE 201, Tascam Portastudio