Aisha Kandisha's Jarring... Shabeezation CD

The liner notes aren't completely clear as to the correct Arabic term for this music: is it "rai" (a style of pop music indigenous to Algeria rather than Morocco, which is this group's homeland), "shaabee" (which simply means "popular music"), or "harira" (which seems to mean something like "stew")? Whatever this intricate, funky North African concoction is called, it kicks some serious booty. The band's name is a bit more straightforward. Aisha Kandisha is the name of an especially malevolent female genie, and the "jarring effects" of her attacks are still greatly feared in modern Morocco; to name one's band after this she-devil is, according to the album's notes, an act of brash tastelessness similar to that of an American band calling itself the Dead Kennedys. My knowledge of Moroccan supernaturalism is limited at best, but I know what I like, and this album's got plenty of it: deep, bone-shaking grooves, lutes, weird samples, and eerie, exotic melodies spun through with lyrics in a language most won't be able to begin to understand. What's not to love? Bandleader Pat Jabbar El Shaheed teamed up with Bill Laswell to bring some extra weight to the group's sound, and the combination of Cheb Ahmed's reedy voice, a huge array of samples, and Laswell's shuddering, rumbling bass is enough to make even the most jaded Westerner bop 'til he drops. You'll hear echoes of Western funk, dub, ska, and house music in the mix here, but the main ingredient is the dust and smoke of the Moroccan "suq" (marketplace), where kids swap rai cassettes and absorb the influences of a hundred different cultures all at once. Highly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson

Includes liner notes by Jamal Ghanim-Barnwell.

Personnel: Pat Jabbar el Shaheed, Jabbar Elshaheed (vocals, guitar, synthesizer, sampler); Cheb Qchatar (vocals, acoustic guitar, electric guitar); El Habib el Malak (vocals, electric guitar); S'Mohamed Kbirr (vocals, mandolin, violin, flute); Abdou el Shaheed (vocals, vibraphone); Omar Jar, My Mansour (vocals, percussion); My. Cheb Ahmed, Mc O'Khan Antifa, Umar Bin Hassan, Bernie Worrell (vocals); Fido K. (synthesizer); Funbox Crew (drums, loops); Bill Laswell (loops, sound effects).

Audio Mixers: Pat Jabbar el Shaheed; Fido K.

Liner Note Authors: Jamal Ghanim-Barnwell; Beni Mellal.

Recording information: Bouaza, Casablanca, Morocco (1991-1993); Secret Laboratory, Basel, Switzerland (1991-1993).

Photographer: Philippe Maillard.

Arrangers: Aisha Kandisha's Jarring Effects; Bernie Worrell; Bill Laswell.

Personnel includes: Bernie Worrell, Umar Bin Hassan.

Producers: Bill Laswell, Patrick Jabbar El Shaheed.

New York Times (Publisher) (2/25/96, Sec.2, p.34) - "...The music is proudly artificial, but its exoticism is both purposeful and heady..."