Mohamed Al Ali - Mili Alay

Syrian music became incredibly trendy in the west a few years ago when people realised it was danceable. Obviously there is a lot more to the music than that, but it is this kind of ingredient that typically makes a previously unheard-of type of music catch on overseas. With Omar Souleyman the loveable figurehead of this development, the music - generally localised to weddings and parties - became universal. Souleyman went from an unknown part-time performer, to niche label Sublime Frequencies alumnus, to working with UK dance's finest, Four Tet. Naturally, a fascination with the music of the the Middle East (and more specifically the Levant) grew and compilations, such as the one featured here, were released. This song is by Mohamed Al Ali, who is practically untraceable online. What we do have of his, though, is this fine example of dabke music. Hypnotic percussion, vocals and mijwiz merge to form a seriously cool, intoxicating tune.

Label: Sham Palace (reissue)
Year: 2012 (reissue)
Genre: Dabke, Dance, Folk