Anthology of Electroacoustic Lebanese Music - Various Artists

Following the Second World War (1945-1949), Beirut established itself as the cultural capital of the Middle East, with the Lebanese music scene leading the way. Lebanese music has a distinct sound due to the country’s unique fusion of Western and Eastern influences. Even Lebanese folk compositions often reference Western contemporary music. After 15 years of civil war and a decade of post war rehabilitation, the situation of alternative art and especially music was very poor in Lebanon. Things began to change around 2000 with the arrival of a new generation of musicians, born at the beginning and during the war, more interested in experimental art forms than in fame or glory. The experimental music scene in Beirut, may exist in relative geographic isolation from other global movements of a similar ilk, but over the past fifteen years it has become a dynamic hub for a dense concentration of fiercely independent musical voices. From humble beginnings and tiny numbers, the close-knit community has grown and thrived.

Unexplained Sounds Group is proud to release an anthology of the contemporary electroacoustic music from Lebanon. As always the compilation doesn’t pretend to be exhaustive of the whole Lebanese experimental scene, being the main goal, simply to turn on a spotlight on it. Another chapter of the "experimental surveys" series to map the best upcoming music from the international underground scene.

Special thanks to Joseph Doumet for his support, and to all artists involved in the project for their kind and much appreciated collaboration.

CD comes in a 4-panel, full colour digipak.

1. Tony Elieh - it's good to die every now and then 09:19
2. Marc Codsi - Lies a turbulent thought 04:01
3. Two or The Dragon - Prelude for the Triumphant Man 06:02
4. Jad Atoui - Diving Blue 09:45
5. Charbel Haber - We Dream In The Sun We Tan When We Can 07:04
6. Stress Distress - The Jetty 06:27
7. Youmna Saba - Nafas 05:39
8. Ziad Moukarzel - Questions of Worry 09:06
9. Fadi Tabbal - The Death of Strangers 04:04
10. Joseph Doumet - Collage 1 04:37
11. Sharif Sehnaoui + Charles Cohen - Cut 1 10:11

Fadi Tabbal - Music For Arcs And Diameters