Tune in to Radio Alhara on Sunday, April 23 at 3 pm EST / 9 pm in Palestine for a guest mix by Debaser’s own Loosey Lou as part of Stefan Christoff’s Free City Radio program. If you missed the live broadcast, listen on demand on Free City Radio’s Soundcloud.
Radio Alhara is a Palestinian online radio station broadcasting from Bethlehem since its launch in March 2020. A project meant to stave off quarantine boredom, the Bethlehem-based station is on a community-building mission, amassing a following with its offbeat mix of Iranian pop, Afro-funk, Bahraini wedding songs, talk shows, news, and debates.
Many thanks to Stefan Christoff of Free City Radio for inviting Debaser to contribute a guest mix, and to Loosey Lou for her brilliant picks
Track listing
Artist name / Track name
* Loosey Lou picks
01. Gavilan Rayna Russom - Meditating on the Present
02. Dakn - difa3an 3an nafs
03. Aisha Qandisha - Taqbir*
04. Habibi - Let Me In*
05. Riit - quamajuapik*
06. ABUL3EES - Bastana*
07. Slashneed - Hole One*
08. Maria Chavez - Ridiculous Circularity
09. Anteloper - Hideouts
10. ARROWOUNDS - Tree of Disciples
11. Anarchist Mountains Trio - A Free Palestine Dream
12. Ben Brown - slight slow
Info on the tracks selected by Lougien:
Taqbir is a Moroccan hardcore/punk band, based in Europe. Their music encourage Muslim and North African women to be defiantly themselves. Little is know about them. They perform in burqas, and remain elusive and anonymous online for security reasons. The band's name "Taqbir" means the Islamic call to prayer, and they sing in Arabic.
Habibi is an American rock band from Brooklyn, NY. The band's name "Habibi" means "my love" in Arabic, a word that the vocalist Rahill Jamalifard often used growing up in her Iranian household. Their music is a blend of psychedelic rock and 60s girl-group harmonies. They sing in English.
Riit is the stage name of Rita Claire Mike-Murphy, a Canadian Inuk musician from Pangnirtung, Nunavut. Riit creates her own space in the electropop world, with deep rhythmic vocals layered over synth cuts, and electronic textures. She sings in Inuktitut.
ABUL3EES is a rapper from East Jerusalem. I found him on a late night Soundcloud deep dive. His laid back music style is a contrast to its context. His beats are simple, his flow is dribbling and conversational, but his rhymes are complex and clever. He raps in Arabic.
Slash Need is a sexy spacy goth electric grunge band from Toronto. They are one of my favourite discoveries from attending Debaser shows, and I would love to share them with the Radio Al-Hara universe.