Masāfāt: Carl Gari and Abdullah Miniawy, Herein lies, MSYLMA, ZULI

The London leg of Masāfāt Festival comes to a close with an evening of unique collaborations and sonic experimentation by Carl Gari and Abdullah Miniawy, Herein lies, MSYLMA and ZULI.

With reverb-laden Sufi chant over nocturnal psychedelic beats, Carl Gari & Abdullah Miniawy’s collaboration seems unusual at first glance, but the results are enthralling. German band Carl Gari and Egyptian musician Miniawy played and recorded together over three days in Cairo last year, putting together a release for London’s The Trilogy Tapes. Here, they perform together in the UK for the first time.    

Ahead of their performance, Cairo-based musician (and founder of VENT) ZULI weaves together computer music, battered hip-hop and deconstructed dance music, bringing the sound of Egyptian underground electronic culture to a London stage.

Opening the evening is Herein lies, the latest project from Syrian-Egyptian producer and composer Bosaina, performing musical numbers shaped by theological fantasy, literature and Golden Age radio.    

Cairo-based ZULI debuted on Lee Gamble's UIQ label with the Bionic Ahmed EP to resounding acclaim from JUNO, Fact, and The Vinyl Factory in early 2016. In Cairo he's a key player in the KiK (Kairo is Koming) group and one of the heads behind the city's pivotal collective VENT, as documented by Resident Advisor, where he's founded a beacon for Egyptian electronic music. With DJ support from Demdike Stare and Kode9 on Radio 1, ZULI's debut 12" covers a unique electronic perspective taking cues from computer music as well as hip hop. You can hear those disparate junctures in his wicked takeover for Lee Gamble's NTS show, his monthly VENT podcast and soon on his upcoming 12" on VENT's own label, launching this summer.    

Carl Gari are a Munich-based group comprised of Jonas Friedlich, Jonas Yamer and Till Funke, who describe themselves as psychedelic ghetto rave. Friedlich has been found releasing on Mistress and Molten Moods, the latter run by Yamer. Abdullah Miniawy is a noted Egyptian chanter, composer and multi-instrumentalist based in Madinet El-Fayoum.    

MSYLMA is an anonymous Mecca-based poet, song writer and producer. His work attempts to blend classical Arabic poetry with genre-ambiguous compositions that occasionally tread in recognizable musical territory, creating a haunting experience in the process.    

Herein lies the reality of fragmentation; a dramatic shaping of music currently inspired by theological fantasy, literature and Golden Age radio; multiple voices emanating from a wounded body, residing in Cairo, Egypt.

Masāfāt Music Pass: attend all four Masāfāt music events for £40

Masāfāt is a two-part festival taking place in London and Cairo this September. The festival is designed to create an open-ended, international platform to foster artistic and professional exchange between independent artists and professionals across the Middle East, North Africa and the UK.