Wednesday, January 25, 2012

When Lebanese Folkloric Pop lights up the city, who needs Kahraba?

           A couple of months ago I received a random facebook message from an old friend...you know the one that makes you smile from ear to ear...and overwhelms you with a rush of blissful nostalgia....
In this message he described a sweet memory that came to mind as he found an old worn out folder in his bedroom while cleaning it up. In this folder there were old sheets of paper with lyrics on them and cassette tapes (remember those?) with recordings of my songs - completely out of tune - which made him laugh alot. And so the first time he actually thought about doing music was apparently a teenage version of me, sitting next to him on a random swing in my compound in Saudi, proposing we put some melody to my lyrics...
We were little birds who longed to fly...locked inside this cage called "Saudi." But with the little resources that we had, we managed to make music a part of our lives. There was a fiery lust for self-expression burning inside of us. I loved dancing, writing lyrics and singing, he loved playing the keyboards and singing. I always thought he had a unique, distinguished voice...whose power we were unaware of at the time...

ADONIS performing @ DICTATEUR
His name is Anthony.
He is now the lead singer of a hip Lebanese folkloric pop band called Adonis and a gifted architect by the way.
The Band includes Joey Abou Jawdeh on the guitar, Fabio Khoury on the bass guitar, and Nicola Hakim on the drums.
Last night I attended a mini-concert celebrating the video premiere of the band's song called "Ma kan mafrood" In English: It shouldn't have been.
What they did?
They brought to life a different kind of appreciation for Arabic music amongst the most hopeless of all.
Catering to a diverse crowd, they've also managed to attract that cynical, artsy youth of Lebanon who are more difficult to please. That daring, alternative crowd of Beirut that repels anything remotely commercial and celebrates individuality among one of the most conformist societies. *Sigh* Amen to that!

Spotted: 
Me, standing right at the front, looking like a groupie.
What an exhilarating feeling it is to stand there and take in a friend's accomplishment. Literally be proud of someone from the bottom of your heart for having followed their dreams. I couldn't stop smiling, I started having face spasms. No joke. That tends to happen to me alot.
What beautiful lyrics.
What beautiful melodies. And is that a Ukelele?? I'm floating in the air right now. And I'm completely sober.
People you would usually spot at a rave are here singing along to those light-hearted, yet moving lyrics, which happen to be inspired by their daily lives in this city. They strike a cord with every single person who has experienced living here.
Beirut, the inspiration behind every word, every note, every smile, every clap and every cheer.

Strings of small colored lightbulbs light up the small stage, reminding me of the electricity cables that criss cross over some parts of the city like disoriented spiderwebs.
If only we could envision those lightbulbs dangling from them....
And, as it were a page in a children's coloring book, we could use music to color this city.
Like Adonis has. 

Intrigued? Then, check them out!
Adonis Facebook page (Where you can listen to some of their awesome songs!)
Adonis Website (The new video will be available to watch online very soon)

2 comments:

  1. "every word, every note, every smile, every clap and every cheer."I like these words.

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  2. Thank you Paul! Hope you enjoyed reading it :)

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