Mawwal Reviews

Current Reviews -- Click on a headline to read more. Date Headline June 01, 2008 Soundcheck: Feed Your Head February 24, 2008 BLACK FLIES January 01, 2008 Black Flies December 01, 2007 Black Flies November 15, 2007 EXPOSE MAGAZINE August 20, 2007 August 01, 2007 THE RESULTS ARE SPECTACULAR May 15, 2007 for fans of Peter Gabriel May 01, 2007 "the epitome of world fusion" January 06, 2004 Mawwal takes world music in an entirely new direction... January 05, 2004 Mawwal is musically bedazzling. January 01, 2003 MAWWAL AT JIM COLE'S GATHERING ROOM June 01, 2008 : Soundcheck: Feed Your Head From the first track, listening to Mawwal this is all there is there is no other place is like absorbing some bizarre hallucinogenic compound through your armpits in a Waziristan sweat lodge. Drawing heavily on traditional Middle Eastern South Asian music and academic icons like Joe Zawinul and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan the contemporary arrangement of these rooted in tradition pieces is well seriously cool. Stringed-instrumentalist/vocalist and Mawwal mastermind Jim Matus has gathered a band of musically-possessed individuals that includes deep, entrancing subsonic fretless bassist Joe OBrien, semi-tone vocalist Jill OBrien and violinist Rohan Gregory. Percussion is provided (in the form of drums, tablas, djembes, dumbeks and many other instruments) by a host of schooled professionals and world travelers including Harshal Tole, Mike Keyes, Shane Shanahan and the ever-present Tony Vacca. Mawwals old new fusion has overtones of Peter Gabriel or Paul Simon mining African and South American musical paradigms, though it seems to incorporate mostly Pakistani and Afghani influences. There are elements of aboriginal chant as well; though there is nary a didgeridoo on the record, there are droning, Tuvan throat-singing vocals that simulate the trance-like qualities of that instrument. It is music that breathes, and quite palpably, like the walls of my dorm room did one day many years ago, in an isolated Vermont boarding school. The whole seems heavily influenced by the psychedelic, in the intense, spiritual sense of the term. This is evidenced not only by the CD cover art—photos of freak rock formations called "fairy chimneys," from the Cappadocia region of Turkey—but also by their quoting Terrence McKenna on the CD insert. McKenna theorized worlds that were all but imperceptible without the aid of psychedelics, and had some pretty smart stuff to say about it all: "Right here and now, one quanta away, there is a raging universe of active intelligence that is transhuman and hyperdimensional. The true situation in which we are embedded is an organism, an organization of active intelligence on a galactic scale." Mawwal have certainly captured this vibe, and if its one you like to connect to, you will dig the hell out of these folks. Catch their release party June 1 at the Iron Horse at 7 p.m. - Tom Sturm/Valley Advocate February 24, 2008 : BLACK FLIES Mawwal is the product of a firmly grounded vision. Band mastermind Jim Matus weaves traditional lyrics from Bulgaria, Libya, Sufi songs, and Malinke chants into lush rock arrangements. At the same time, he casts the music against a backdrop of radical political dissent, and roots it in compassion, brotherhood, and anger”. / HARTFORD ADVOCATE - Dan Barry/ Hartford Advocate January 01, 2008 : Black Flies I don’t know why I did not slide this one into the player the moment it arrived. Boom! Right off the bat it grabbed me with drums the size of a continent massed vocals and a bit later electric guitar and bass. And that bass! The unmistakable sound sent me running for the credits, yes, there it was: Percy jones. By the time the electric violin entered I was hooked. This was world fusion the way it should be done. - Jon Davis/Expose December 01, 2007 : Black Flies For the first impression of Black Flies its hard to get beyond wow! For me this is what progressive music is all about. For my taste this is album is just about perfect in every way. The compositions are intricate and engaging and the musical performances are nothing short of spectacular. a fascinating brew. Bumping this album off my Best of 2007 list this year will be quite a feat. Black Flies is essential! - Gibraltar Encyclopedia Of progressive Rock November 15, 2007 : EXPOSE MAGAZINE Mawwals world fusion is peerless in its passion and delivery - Mac Beaulieu August 20, 2007 : “Woven among Libyan folk melodies, Tuvan overtone “throat singing,” and Pakistani qawwali performances, Percy Jones’s fretless growl buttresses this assembly of compositions and arrangements by sonic architect Jim Maltus. Percy’s earthy tone and free-flowing phrasing are exceptional throughout. Jones and the album’s other bassist, Tyler Van Ostrand, square off on Yurodivy, trading some the tastiest bass licks in contemporary fusion”. - Brian Fox/Bass Player magazine August 01, 2007 : THE RESULTS ARE SPECTACULAR If you have any familiarity at all with the explorations of Peter Gabriel into the music of other cultures, MAWWAL is what that could have evolved into, pushed further by a quantum leap. Black Flies is at once experimental and passionate. Traditional pieces from Libya, Syria & Yemen are explored and then blown wide open with amazing arrangements by Jim that allow western perspectives to swim and mingle in such an intense yet flowing way. The results are spectactcular. I would urge anyone reading this page to check out MAWWAL (as well as his other band PARANOISE). This CD has captivated me for more than one evening and it might just snare you too! - Ray Dorsey/Chaos realm May 15, 2007 : for fans of Peter Gabriel "For fans of Peter Gabriel’s brand of world music, Mawwal should be the next step, as this is the most advanced fusion of Middle Eastern and western progressive music we’ve heard." - Kinesis May 01, 2007 : "the epitome of world fusion" "Their sound is thick and abundant, often stormy and always impassioned and intense. Black Flies is truly a hearty feast for the ears. Mawwal embodies the epitome of world fusion while still winning the hearts of any purist with their treatment of culture and tradition from East to West.” FIVE STARS - CDBABY January 06, 2004 : Mawwal takes world music in an entirely new direction... "Inspired by musicians like Peter Gabriel, Karsh Kale, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Yousou N'Dour and Hamaza el Din, Mawwal takes world music in an entirely new direction. The music manages to sound familiar yet new. Matus and his fellow musicians blend elements of folk, jazz and groove rock with traditional indigenous sounds and textures. Inventive vocal arrangements in Arabic and English weave through an ensemble of laouto (Greek lute), violin and traditional percussion on tabla, dumbec, frame drum and riq to creat music unlike any you have heard before". - Sheryl Hunter (critic, The Recorder, Greenfield, MA) January 05, 2004 : Mawwal is musically bedazzling. "Mawwal is musically bedazzling. Jill O'Brien's angelic voice transcends language with emotion and takes you on a journey around the world. Ken Matarazzo on percussion is smokin' and demonstrates that rare balance of skill, training and improvisational creativity. Jim Matus, on loauto has a talent to draw magical melodies out of the air. He can weave a spell and put people into a trance. Joe O'Brien's enjoyment of what he's doing shows in his smile as his bass fills out the sound. Playing music that touches us and makes us get up and dance, Mawwal is truly music of the people. " - Hadama (The Crescent Dancers) January 01, 2003 : MAWWAL AT JIM COLE'S GATHERING ROOM “Mawwal is an astonishing blend of traditional and contemporary styles of music, of eastern and western influences. It is music that appeals to head, heart and body - melodic and catchy as it is sublime, hypnotic- and it makes you want to move! Mawwal reharmonizes traditional melodies from around the world into an original and fascinating new genre of world‚ music - groove-oriented bass and drums, the gorgeous harmonies of Jill O‚Brien and Jim Matus, and stellar counterpoint of the Laouto (greek lute). It rings true to its sources yet expresses an original voice and vision through its trance-inducing, enchanting spell.” -Jim Cole “Mawwal is mesmerizing! Jill O'Brien and Jim Matus blend their voices in rhythmic harmony”. -Judyth Crystal -