SUBR صبر is a duo (Lougien Dawoudiah and Nicholas LePage) that creates abstracted soundscapes rooted in Palestinian traditional sounds and field recordings. The soundscapes are built by layering multiple speakers that correspond to reconfigured music controllers. SUBR performs their music as a live conversation between their machines, in which Nick sonically frames the performance with deep and atmospheric tones, that then carry a series of altered traditional Palestinian sounds that Lougien produces by deconstructing, filtering and stripping them down to their bare elements: drums, harmony, vocals, bass. SUBR shares a unique deep listening experience that is renewed every time they play.
Lougien (she/her) is a community advocate, creative and DJ based in so-called Ottawa. As a Palestinian with refugee history, she is creatively driven by the potential of music and art for collective action, social change, and healing. She uses a variety of platforms to share, deconstruct and rebuild cultural narratives using personal and sourced audio-visual libraries, rooted in years of wandering and deep digital digging.
Nicky (he/him) is an Acadian settler actor and DJ based in so-called Montreal. He was an active member of the University of Ottawa encampment, volunteering primarily as a marshall for the camp. His work aims to draw awareness to issues of social and ecological justice.
Read the full interview below, and don’t miss 20+ other artists presenting at Pique fall edition on September 28th, 2024. Tickets available here.
“The name SUBR (صبر) is based on the Arabic word “Sabir” which means patience, forbearance, endurance...The layered meaning of the word spoke to the layers we are building as we perform.”
What brought you to collaborate with each other on this project?
Lou: Nick and I met for the first time at the UOttawa encampment. It was a meeting point that facilitated further discussions about life, art, and our role within it. Anyone who meets Nick can instantly recognize his dedication to community building and social change. It’s something that is also felt in his practice and knowledge as a DJ. The appropriateness and appropriation of music quickly became the forefront of our discussions. We began envisioning settings that allow for sound to toe the line between empathy and escape, mourning and dawn, anger and euphoria. It invited us to step out of our comfort zones and explore the genres we usually reach for, and how these genres intertwined. As such, our conversations transitioned from using our words, to using our equipment.
Nick: Lou and I had been planning a fundraiser in solidarity for Palestine for quite some time, and we always wanted to work with Club SAW and Pique, two spaces that have always supported Palestinian artists and Palestinian liberation. When the encampment community decided to dismantle their camp on Tabaret lawn due to the lack of good faith negotiations by the university, we started to reflect on how we could reshape our project to speak more directly to the history of the encampment. We landed on the concept of a Deep Listening circle as a way to offer a space for community members to gather and reflect on their experience.
How did you come up with the name SUBR? How does this relate to the larger themes of your project?
Lou: The name SUBR (صبر) is based on the Arabic word "Sabir" which means patience, forbearance, endurance. The same word also means cactus: thorny, resilient, sometimes it flowers, sometimes it bears fruit. The fruit that it bears (prickly pear) is considered a national symbol of Palestine, having been grown across historic Palestine for years, and traditionally being used to mark out land boundaries. The layered meaning of the word spoke to the layers we are building as we perform.
What power does music have to respond to the extremely distressing realities in Palestine at the moment?
Nick: I remember that when we first met at the encampment we pretty quickly got into deep discussion about the role of music in activism and solidarity for Palestine. I felt that it was difficult to align my passion for electronic dance music and DJing with the deadly seriousness of the situation. It felt awkward and frivolous. But after quite a few conversations we had, and working on the N10.as show together, I began to see how music can energize us to take action and also at least address these difficult realities.
Lou: As a listener, I find myself turning to music as a tool to reconnect and disconnect. It is only through music that I can imagine myself in a different reality, and it’s music again that invites me back. It sends me away mesmerized and surrendered, and brings me back applauded and echoed. Yet, not all music can fulfill that purpose. The ongoing tragedies in Gaza and the West Bank have tuned my ears out of many genres of mainstream music that I mindlessly consumed in the past. As music makers in this context, it’s important to think critically about which environment we’re creating for listeners beyond just composition. Is it one that is aware and uplifting, or one that is ignorant and alienating?
Your project is expressly in response to the student encampment movement, and physical spaces of solidarity and activism. How does music and sound impact or shape these spaces?
Nick: When I first visited the McGill encampment during a trip to Montreal, I was struck by the communal chanting of protest songs. The leader of the chanting had a wonderful voice and was accompanied by an amazing drummer. I felt totally immersed in the moment and there was such raw emotional power to what I was witnessing and participating in. I later visited the U of T encampment and attended a beautiful concert by a local Palestinian artist who played lullabies for the children of Gaza facing constant bombardment by Israel. He explained that knew that these children would never hear his songs, and yet still he felt it was important to play them, and to address their suffering. I feel that there is something so crucial in which music and sound has such a direct impact on, and access to, people’s emotions, and that is really needed in solidarity struggles.
Accompanied Readings - Creative and Conceptual References
Sonic Warfare: Sound, Affect, and the Ecology of Fear, Steve Goodman (Kode9)
This book explores the powerful role sound plays in shaping environments, influencing behavior, and even controlling populations. It examines how sound can be used both as a weapon and as a means of creating affective spaces—environments charged with emotion or fear.
Quantum Listening: From Practice to Theory (To Practice Practice), Pauline Olivieros
A collection of writings that delve into the concept of listening as a deeply transformative and expansive practice. It introduces the concept of “Listening as a Political and Social Act” where Oliveros presents listening as not just a sensory activity but a way of connecting with others and the environment. She posits that deep and quantum listening can foster empathy, collaboration, and mindfulness, making it a vital tool for both individual transformation and societal change.
Profile of Palestinian Hip-Hop Collective DAM
This interview with Palestinian hip-hop group DAM discusses their emotional conflict performing at a music festival amid the ongoing violence in Gaza. The group reflects on the power and limitations of art, questioning whether their music can truly create change while their people face daily suffering. DAM member Tamer Nafar explains “But if you cannot change the world, that weight is taken off. Music can’t stop a war machine, but it has a tiny role. Knowing that is freeing, in a way. I’ve never felt more creative.”
Local Community Resources
INSAF
Palestine Legal Defence Fund
https://www.lcpal.ca/donate
Gazan Canadians
https://www.instagram.com/gazancanadians?igsh=MWc1aGFldmtsdWYwYQ==