Nala Sinephro
Space 1.8

Figurant sur le second various de Kump, Maahrt signe ici son retour parmi nous. Ce septième disque est une pièce aux deux faces traversées d'un même trouble. Quand « Gault » martèle des réminiscences big beat contre l'austérité d'une trame industrielle, « Clag » vibre de breaks habités d'échos et de voix. L'un frappe, l'autre fuit, tous deux se déploient en artefacts mitoyens et pourtant si singuliers. Il faut bien attendre le dernier titre « Noma » pour tenter un pont dans le lieu mince laissé par ces deux masses noires. Ce pont, A Strange Wedding l'imagine en plan-séquence cyberpunk aérien tandis qu'Odopt le sculpte en angles bruts. Osez pénétrer dans ce labyrinthe plus grand qu'il n'y paraît, il se pourrait que vous souhaitiez y rester davantage que ce que vous croyez.Featured on the second various out on Kump, Maahrt is back among us. This seventh record is a two-faced coin pierced by a single disturbance. When « Gault » pummels big beat remains against an industrial frame, « Clag » vibrates from breaks resonating of voices and echoes. One hits, the other flees, both extend in twin yet singular artifacts. The track « Noma » comes at last as an attempt to bind both sides in this narrow place in between two dark spaces. A Strange Wedding re-imagines this bridge as an aerial cyberpunk movie sequence whereas Odopt sharpens its angles. Dare to penetrate this labyrinth bigger than it seems, you might wish to stay there longer than you think.

Wishah و​ِ​ش​ا​ح by Youmna Saba"Wishah" (meaning veil in Arabic) is a composition for voice, oud and electronics in five stages, written by Youmna Saba between 2021 and 2022.Following her previous solo works "Njoum" (2014) and "Arb’een" (40) (2017), this album marks a significant turning point in Saba's journey. Created after leaving Beirut and settling in Paris, "Wishah" reveals a profound shift in her musical expression, informed by rigorous research in the sonic properties of sung Arabic phonemes and their role in shaping synthesized electronic sounds.The album employs a digital extension for the oud, a concept developed by Saba in her research project 'Taïma’. This device enhances the oud's sonic range, seamlessly integrating synthesised electronics. It also amplifies subtle, often overlooked sounds generated during playing, such as resonances and fingerboard friction.The composition is organized into five distinct stages, each contributing to a process of gradual revelation. As the tracks unfold, they strip away layers of constructed emotions and perceptions that have been intricately woven over time, to expose a space that no longer exists. Wishah is a farewell to home.Youmna Saba (born in Beirut, 1984) is a musician, composer and musicologist. Her current research focuses on instrument and space resonances in different sonic and musical contexts. With four albums to this date, she has collaborated with musicians of different musical expressions such as Kamilya Jubran, Floy Krouchi, Mike Cooper and the Neue Vocalsolisten ensemble, and has taken part in numerous artist residencies. She is the laureate of the first sound residency at Quai Branly Museum, Paris (2022-2023) with her research project and installation “La Réserve des Non-Dits”, now on view at the museum; and a laureate of the music residency program at the Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris (2020-2021).“Nestled in the interval between the urgency of speaking, and that of remaining silent or speaking out of turn, Youmna Saba engages in a relentless yet passionate and loving heart-to-heart with her instrument.” – Nasri N. Sayegh, L’Orient le Jour"Lebanese musician, composer and musicologist Youmna Saba positions her voice at the center of her latest solo album (...) Very strong material indeed." – Boomkat"A remarkable new work from Beirut's Youmna Saba, now based in Paris. Saba is an accomplished oud player (...) On Wishah و​ِ​ش​ا​ح her oud's sound is technologically extended, to amplify every string squeak and body tap, and further integrated with sympathetic electronics. The works range from abstract processed sound to delicate oud fingerpicking, and most tracks patiently reach a place where Saba brings in her emotive vocals. It's an immersive, moving listening experience." – Peter Hollo, Utility Fog

Almost exactly a year since fellow De Lichting co-founder RDS made his Kalahari debut, Eversines returns to the label in a big way. But this is the Dutchman like you’ve never heard him before; tough and direct, coming through with a mean streak of sci-fi propulsion that leaves the sanguine reflections of releases past in its wake.We’re flexing attitude from the off. Almost reminiscent of something I-F might have cooked up back in the day, ‘Gaze’ might reference Detroit, but there’s also something decidedly Dutch about it. There is, however, no mistaking the Motor City influences on ‘Fast Fall’. Jacking, Detroit-inspired gear, it most closely resembles the introspection of previous Eversines releases.On the flip, where ‘Affection Towards The Urban Environment’ lights up neural pathways with some seriously spannered, acid-fuelled electro-techno, ‘Wavedash’ rounds things off with another nod to the American Midwest. Tensile-strength, hi-tek machine funk that’s retro-tinted without ever resorting to pastiche.

Two visionary explorers of the acid and dub intersection team up for a seven track LP In The Afterworld on Acid Test.Om Unit and TM404 have both been researching production and compositional elements in the crosshairs of dub and acid for the last few years - Om Unit most notably with his Acid Dub Studies 1 & 2, and TM404 with his Acidub album in particular.Om Unit has been a longtime fan of TM404’s use of the TB-303 and the deconstructed space he brings to the house and techno template. Meanwhile Om Unit’s own leaning towards breaks and reggae instrumentation has offered a different approach to the acid sound they both love so much. So an LP with Acid Test seemed the perfect opportunity to combine those approaches and see what kind of mutations could be discovered. The result is a primordial soup that is in parts acid, dub, breaks and ambient, full of spaced-out synths and psychedelic bass, where the pair enjoyed building tracks with a feel for where the music wanted to go, irrespective of stylistic constraints.Rolling opener Motorway Acid sets the pace high and strong, conjuring both wide open spaces and fast-paced travel at the same time, with weightless pads, stroboscopic breaks and a mighty 303 riff that can teleport you to the middle of a foggy dancefloor. Microdose Mondays on the other hand, slows the tempo down and veers into cosmic territory, with perfectly dubbed drum rolls and burbling squelch. But it’s London Stock that kicks the album into hyperspace, finding its futuristic steppers groove somewhere in the answer to the hypothetical question ‘what if Shaka had produced Stingray?’Speaking of underwater electronics, Meanwhile In The Smoking Area delves deep into submarine territory, delivering the kind of bass weight and sonar acid signals you’d need a diver’s suit for. It’s a vibe that’s continued on the tracks Thursday and Refracted, and speaks to the record's title - otherworldly, dreamy bass meditations that aren’t of this realm. The album closes out with Praha, a pacey yet ambient vista of warm wide synths, layers of 303, and dub echoes that sound like the machines are slowly coming to life.It’s in this altered state that the album resides, somewhere between worlds and styles, emerging out of the space around the TB-303 that Om Unit and TM404 have created, with their open-minded approach to the music and to this collaboration. Free the 303!