Got it covered

Nothing new here, just new to me; both tracks actually date back to 2014.  Well, really they're one track, the original song by East India Youth, and the cover by Hannah Peel, which I heard on the radio today.  I've got a lot going on right now and found the Hannah Peel version very soothing, which made me want to hear the original and do a post on both.  I've been meaning to check out East India Youth so coming across this has been a nice reminder.  To confuse matters a little Hannah Peel herself has two versions of this song, one a slightly simpler live rendition.  I'll post all below and you decide for yourself what you like!  I think I like Peel's delicate live version best.





I like this version; don't let the video put you off, even though it looks like she's playing in an East London shed on a home-made music box -- trust me, my hipster radar went beserk too.

Sounds of the Arabz - part 1 - DAM and Narcy

So I'm coming across a lot of contemporary Arabic music. I've been a fan of Arabic music for a while, probably because of my days in Michigan. As some know I am a HUGE fan of Yasmin Hamdan. But I've been discovering other stuff too, so here's part 1 showcasing other Arab artists, this one with some Arab hip hop:

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DAM is Palestine's first hip-hop group. I first heard of them about 10 years ago in college, when they were featured in the Sundance documentary Slingshot Hip Hop (the director is a friend). A few years later I saw them perform twice in NY and they were terrific.

Here's my favourite track from their first album Ihdaa' (Dedication), "Mali Huriye" (I Don't Have Freedom):



DAM now have a female member and released a new single a few months ago, a feminist anthem, yeah! "Who You Are", has a quite inventive video directed by Palestinian director Scandar Copti. Here's a brief article about the band and video:
http://972mag.com/watch-palestinian-hip-hop-group-tackles-patriarchy-in-new-video/104898/





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Narcy is an Iraqi rapper by way of UAE and Montreal. He's got a new album out called World War Free. Its in English. Here's a short film called "Rise" to help promote, directed by Gulf director Ali F. Mostafa - to me its mostly flashy visuals but I like the part with the kids, that was cute and unexpected:




The other thing I liked about the video was the song "Epiphany". I'm not really a fan of Narcy's sound but I like this track:



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Lots more coming soon featuring other artists of Arab origin. But seriously though - where are my desi artists at?!