Tag Archives: Jerusalem In My Heart

Watch Jerusalem In My Heart’s short film for ‘Tanto’ featuring Lucrecia Dalt

10 November 2021

Hot on the heels of the release of Qalaq, Jerusalem In My Heart shared last week a short film to accompany album track ‘Tanto’ featuring guest Lucrecia Dalt. Speaking about this collaboration, Radwan Ghazi Moumneh has this to say:

“Lucrecia Dalt and I have shared much music with one another, and over the course of the many years of knowing each other and sharing stages, we decided to collaborate on the track “Tanto” for Qalaq. We discussed a few ideas and wanted to keep it minimal, but maintain the form of a ‘duet’. We exchanged some music and she came up with a beautiful tape loop for the backbone of the track, through which we were able to find our vocal identities. It was a haunting, eerie, out-of-time tape loop, which she proposed after I had sent her the (Arabic) lyrics and a translation of them—and most importantly, their intention. The song is meant to evoke the feeling of ‘envy’ familiar to many people in developing nations.”

The accompanying film was shot on 16mm by new member Erin Weisgerber with concept and performance by dancer/choreographer Stacey Desilier. Radwan comments:

“Erin Weisgerber and I decided to make a small film for this song. I had wanted to work with the incredible Stacey Desilier as a choreographer and dancer. We exchanged some ideas and I sent everyone some film references, to which everyone echoed back others, and from there we settled on a setting and imagery and actions and shot this film in the forests north of Tiohtia:ke / Montréal.”

Watch the film below.

Qalaq is out now through Constellation

Jerusalem In My Heart’s new album Qalaq out tomorrow, listen to opener ‘Abyad Barraq’

07 October 2021

Photo: Isabelle Stachtchenko

Qalaq, the new album from Jerusalem In My Heart, will see the light of day tomorrow through Constellation. The performative audio-visual project founded by Radwan Ghazi Moumneh, now comprising new member Erin Weisgerber, had already shared a compelling and entrancing taste from the album with ‘Qalaq 3 (w​/​Moor Mother)’, ‘Qalaq 4 (w​/​Rabih Beaini)’ and ‘Qalaq 5 (w​/​Oiseaux​-​Tempête)’. Ahead of Qalaq‘s release, Jerusalem In My Heart have shared the opening track, ‘Abyad Barraq’, featuring drummer Greg Fox (Liturgy, Ex Eye, Zs, GDFX), who comments:

“Ever since first hearing JIMH, I’ve wanted to collaborate. I’ve always resonated deeply with Radwan’s creative approach to music making, and on a deeper level, I feel we connect regarding what I would describe as a deep urge for justice and liberation on a global scale. I feel close to this work even though I am only drumming on the opening track. It is an honour to be part of this record.”

‘Abyad Barraq’ comes with an accompanying film made by Weisgerber who used the pictures of Beirut-based photographer Tony Elieh taken in the aftermath of the Beirut port explosion. Watch it below.

Jerusalem In My Heart announces new album Qalaq

19 August 2021

Photo: Isabelle Stachtchenko

There’s no stopping Jerusalem In My Heart, the performative audio-visual project founded by prodigious and adventurous musician, composer and producer-in-demand Radwan Ghazi Moumneh, exploring and merging traditional Arabic music with electronic influences. Following the outstanding 2018 Daqa’iq Tudaiq, news of a follow-up album have emerged. Jerusalem In My Heart have announced the release of Qalaq, described by Moumneh as a sister album and “mirrored image” to Daqa’iq Tudaiq. Taking its name from an Arabic word with various meanings, for Moumneh “Qalaq” means “deep worry” in a global scale but specifically in reference to Lebanon, a country beset by corruption and destabilization, its social, economic, and political crisis and the aftermath of the catastrophic explosion at the Beirut port in August 2020. Moumneh explains:

“The Side Two tracks are all named ‘Qalaq’ and then numbered, representing the degrees of layered and complex violence that Lebanon and the Levant have reached in the last couple of years, from the complete and utter failure of the Lebanese sectarian state that has driven the economy to a grinding halt, to its disastrous handling of the migrant influx from neighbouring failed states, to the endemic corruption that led to the August 2020 port explosion, to the latest chapter of Palestinian erasure and yet another brutally asymmetrical and disproportionate bombing campaign on Gaza.”

There are numerous guest musicians on Qalaq including Greg Fox, Oiseaux-Tempête, Lucrecia Dalt, Tim Hecker, Moor Mother, Alanis Obomsawin, and more, who collaborated remotely. Moumneh speaks about the process:

“I composed the album as a bare skeleton, giving each artist a section to decompose, edit, re-interpret and recompose as they desired, sending me back their stems which I then mixed into my own, remoulding newfound coherences in the overarching composition.”

Qalaq also introduces the newest member of Jerusalem In My Heart on visual duties, experimental filmmaker Erin Weisgerber. The short film for Qalouli made last year for Constellation’s Corona Borealis Longform Singles Series marked the duo’s first formal new work together.

We’ll have to wait until October 8th for the album to be out through Constellation but Jerusalem In My heart already shared 3 tracks, ‘Qalaq 3 (w​/​Moor Mother)’, ‘Qalaq 4 (w​/​Rabih Beaini)’ and ‘Qalaq 5 (w​/​Oiseaux​-​Tempête)’, serving as a compelling and entrancing taste of the album. Take a listen now.

In other related news, Jerusalem In My Heart have announced a European and Canadian tour this November, where the music-and-film duo will present their new audio-visual show.

Suuns release third and last instalment from ‘2020’ remix project

10 September 2020

Suuns have been rolling out several versions of ‘2020’ as part of their remix project, which saw them invite other musicians they admire to remix the song lifted from their 2013 album Images Du Futur. Following the first two instalments, the Montreal based quartet have just shared the third and final one, featuring re-workings from Brazilian singer-songwriter Sessa; Montréal-Beirut contemporary Arabic audio-visual duo Jerusalem In My Heart; Brooklyn-based dream-pop project Sound of Ceres; New York saxophonist, drummer, synthesizer player and composer Brahja Waldman, and footwork pioneer RP Boo. All the remixes are avilable digitally on Bandcamp on a Pay What You Can basis, with all proceeds going to the NAACP. Here´s the electrifying version of ‘2020’ reworked by Brahja Waldman.

Mixtape #104

02 April 2019

Maurice Louca, as a solo artist as well as with his numerous and adventurous collaborations, had conquered our ears a long time ago. A stalwart at the forefront of Egypt´s flourishing experimental music scene, Louca is an incredibly talented and prolific composer and producer. Earlier this year he released Elephantine, his magnificent new album, and we simply can´t put it down. So we´re beyond excited he accepted to helm this month´s mixtape! Here's his gem-filled mix that will stimulate and delight your ears!

  1. Albert Ayler – Goin’ Home [Black Lion Records]
  2. Sunil Ganguly – Chupke Chupke Raat Din Aanso
  3. Alexandre St-Onge – Joseph Carey Merrick (Part Two) [Oral]
  4. Jerusalem In My Heart –  Thahab Mish Roujou Thahab [Constellation]
  5. Sote – Breadth Digit (Glass Lung) [Sub Rosa]
  6. Sun Ra and his Solar Arkestra – Other Planes Of There (excerpt) [El Saturn Records‎]
  7. Daphne Oram – Pulse Persephone
  8. Umm Kulthum – Ghana El Rabea (excerpt)
  9. Don Ayler – Prophet John (excerpt) [Revenant‎]
  10. Miles Davis – Live Electric and Brutal @Berlin 1973 (Excerpt)
  11. Albert Ayler – Our Prayer [Impulse!]

Jerusalem In My Heart share new single from upcoming third album Daqa’iq Tudaiq

21 September 2018

With Daqa’iq Tudaiq quickly nearing its release date on October 5th through Constellation, Jerusalem In My Heart have added to the anticipation by revealing another mesmerising single from the album, ‘Wa Ta’atalat Loughat Al Kalam Pt 3 & 4’. Appearing on side one, this is the second single to be released following the otherworldly and compelling ‘Thahab, Mish Roujou’, Thahab’. ‘Wa Ta’atalat Loughat Al Kalam’, which translates as ‘The Language Of Speech Has Broke Down’, is a modern orchestral-electronic re-interpretation of the popular Egyptian classic Ya Garat Al Wadi by Mohammad Abdel Wahab. The duo’s extraordinary composer and producer Radwan Ghazi Moumneh, who had envisioned it for a long time, enlisted Sam Shalabi as arranger and musical director and assembled a 15-piece orchestra in Beirut to bring this piece to life. “’Wa Ta’atalat Loughat Al Kalam’ is an expression of wordless love and transcendent communication between two lovers’ eyes in Shawqi’s poem”, describes the press release. “JIMH re-titles the song with this line, exploding the sentiment with more complexity, tragedy and socio-political meaning – also prefiguring the formal aesthetic ruptures JIMH bring to the piece itself.”
Now immerse yourself in the stunning sounds of ‘Wa Ta’atalat Loughat Al Kalam Pt 3 & 4’.

To celebrate the album’s release, the Montréal-Beirut contemporary Arabic audio-visual duo will embark on an extensive tour, with several stops in Canada and Europe, including a special performance at Le Guess Who? on November 8th, where they will present the project Don’t Say The Moon Has Set with an oriental orchestra from Beirut.