‘Bled El Fen’ is an ambitious double vinyl release by IDRISS D that celebrates Arabic electronic music. 303, Roland, and 4×4 are all common elements in electronic music, but in this release, there is a distinct Arabic flavor honoring his Algerian homeland. We asked him to break it down Track by Track.
“I’ve been working on the album for two and a half years. It’s a very important project for me to elaborate the music of my beloved country Algeria, in an electronic key, introducing master Algerian artists such as Zineddine Bouchaala, Gasba Electrique, Leila Moon and Chazil to a wider audience”.
Vinyl 1
Tsakhbira-(introduction)
This intro track to my album was done with Zineddine, one of the best Malouf singers in Algeria. I grew up with his music, and through my mum, I managed to get his attention. We connected to ask if he wanted to come onboard for this project and this is the result.
Bled el Fen – (the country of the art)
It’s a downtempo electronica track, and this one is a special combination of a hypnotic Roland Jupiter 8’s pulsating bassline, dark drone pads, and a sweet Algerian instrument called an El Aoud.
Giving the track an element that connects to my heritage is something not often heard in electronic music.
Ghira Bla Sebba – (jealousy with no reason)
I had the chance to work with an impressive singer called Chazil. A modern Rai and matched perfectly with the 808’s syncopated groove.
Mohammed – (the name of our prophet)
This track works as the outro to the A-side. My voice is a tribute to an Algerian writer called Kateb Yacine, in the middle alongside dark pads and synth noises with a loop electronic organic groove.
Vinyl 2
Hey Galbi – (my heart)
This track I collaborated with Bob aka Gasba Electrique. It’s a house electronic piano, yet hypnotic, and is made even more special with acid 303-filtered bassline.
Bab El Oued – (a popular area in Algiers)
Leila Moon is someone I have a lot of respect for and have followed for some time. It was a pleasure to work on this track together. It has a hypnotic and dark breakbeat groove with granular delay EFXs.
Elf Leila – (one thousand and one night)
The italo track on the album pays tribute to Oum Keltoum. It’s got Arabian string breaks mixed with an 80’s italo disco LinnDrum groove and DX7 synths.
Harramt – (I forbidden)
The last club track on the album is a tribute to Warda el Diazaira, a famous Algerian singer. The track embodies classic string arrangements with 909 drums and 303 acid sounds.
Find IDRISS D on Instagram. Listen to Bled EL Fen on Bandcamp or Spotify.
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