Warped and dragged through the murky underbelly of the Levantine underground comes ‘Volume 1’ the x-rated left-field debut from the pseudonymous DJ GAWAD.
Via pitched up vocals dripping with delay, DJ GAWAD takes us on a tour of the region's most urgent artists, his interjections oscillating between cocky boast and frustrated lament.
Through this new persona, DJ GAWAD pulls back the curtain to reveal himself as the protagonist of the mixtape-like album, as replete with features as it is with expletives, an enigmatic ghoul in the back of the studio with an endless supply of broken sample flips, giving the album its old school feel while still speaking to contemporary hip hop aesthetics.
A Jordanian/Palestinian Memphis gangster rap parody par excellence, the album is infused with satirical commentary on the state of the contemporary music scene, yet DJ GAWAD shows as much as he tells, expertly fashioning a sound that makes you wonder about the identity of the artist behind the braggadocious persona of the self-titled “best producer in the Middle East.”
Drawing heavily from the Memphis rap mixtapes of the mid 1990s, DJ GAWAD has clearly identified the same brooding atmosphere in his own surroundings. On Mat3’anish (feat. Bleng & Fara7) DJ GAWAD makes his most explicit reference to the Memphis sound, twisting the hallmark cowbells that defined that movement to reflect the equally raw nature of his own setting.
Similarly, in Bandana (feat. Jurum), DJ GAWAD finds the perfect tension between his romantic sampling tendencies and the brutal sensibilities of his featured artist. As if liberated by DJ GAWAD's anonymity and irreverence, his menagerie of artists appear to have been emboldened, embracing the obscene free naturedness of the album, setting their lyrical prowess free to wander.
No expense was spared in the post production treatment of DJ GAWAD’s debut, with Iraqi-American artist Mark Gergis incorporating the Nakamichi Dragon cassette deck in the mastering process, as is evidenced by the crisp saturation of the album's sonics.
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DJ GAWAD, the self-proclaimed “best producer in the Middle East”, is the pseudonymous persona of the Arab artist, pioneer, philosopher and lover. The anonymity grants him complete artistic freedom to pursue his creative endeavors in full. DJ GAWAD embarked on a journey from the West to the East to collaborate with local left-field rap artists in the region to produce this masterful debut, released on Drowned By Locals.
DJ GAWAD Presents: Volume 1 is his first feature album, and he will continue releasing more projects under this moniker. Stay tuned.
credits
released August 1, 2024
Producer: DJ GAWAD
Vocals and Lyrics: Tony Bleng, Fara7, rknddn, Julmud, Movenwomen, MrF13, Twinkie, Jurum
Master: Mark Gergis
Kingpin & Executive Producer: Sukk-Leil
Artwork: 3YN
Video: Hamada DVD & Dr. MP$
Text: Nihal El Aasar
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