HabibiSly
"It's disco singing and dancing on a magic carpet!"
This is the art of the luminous encounter, the alchemy of opposites embracing. A breath of Eastern electro blends with disco, a Syrian voice cuts through the air like an incantation, and suddenly the party becomes a ritual. His music is an invitation to jubilation, but a subtle jubilation, nourished by history and grace. Born in Aleppo, son of a jazz double-bass player, he carries within him rigor and freedom, precision and abandon. HABIBISLY doesn't seek effect, it seeks momentum: the kind that sweeps away, brings people together, makes scars dance and ruins bloom.
PROG IS SOMETIMES JUST A PHIL...
Where and when did you first hear it?
I couldn't say exactly when, but I remember that from the very first notes, the balance is clear: oriental electro that opens up to the world, disco that warms you up, a Syrian voice that whispers all the spirit of the Orient. You're immediately drawn in, hooked with no return. Behind it all lies the experience of a studio musician who has been sought after for decades, collaborating with M, Keziah Jones, and soon Damon Albarn... He plays with grace and obviousness. It's pure pleasure, but with a mastery that lifts you up. We know right away that it's going to be good, that it's going to get us all on board.
His music in 3 words, or more...?
Oriental. Disco jazz. Bewitching. Each note carries the memory of melodies from the Levant, a sensuality that crosses the ages, the pulse is festive, danceable, but always held together by instrumental elegance. And then there's that voice that acts like a spell, a divine breath that envelops and transports us into a crazy solar party, magnetic and refined.
If this were the soundtrack to a daydream, what would it sound like?
A not-so-deserted but somewhat deserted, forgotten country, where music traces a furrow of flowers. On a rooftop in Beirut or Damascus, a building that has danced its way through wars and storms, and above it, a sunrise party. Music becomes oasis, joy, dream, life.
Any anecdotes about Line-up 's career?
The project came to us through the tour operator 1er Jour, with whom we've been working since... our earliest days! Poirier, João Selva, Cyril Atef... Every year, they're there, like family members you meet again at Christmas... and they come with great presents too! Laurent knows the Line-up like the back of his hand - he even played on a Champ de Platines - and he's part of Radio Meuh's history. When he signed HabibiSly, he thought of us immediately. And we knew it would be a good fit, as always.