Following on from the artists of the year list, it’s time for the top ten albums of the year, as decided by our users. One important caveat before proceeding though; the albums need not have been released in 2015. This is a list of – through a combination of actions on the Dandin website – the most popular…
Do you fancy your fuzz a little pickled? A question no one would have thought to ask before but when Egyptian musicians Youssef Abouzeid, Ismail Seleit and Farid El-Sehrawy decided to create and build their own brand of pedals, with the first off the conveyor belt a fuzz/oscillator number called the Distorshy (a pun on the Arabic…
يوجد لدى الإسكندريّة ما يمكن أن أصفه بسلاح ذو حدّين، و هو نوع من الإنقطاع الزمني عن العاصمة، ففي حين أجد -و في رأيي الشخصي- أن الإسكندرية تعاني من شكل من التأخر في الحقبة الزمنيّة، مما يعطي لها ملمساً في المزج بين عناصر تتواجد في زمنين مختلفين، و ليس كأن الفنّان يعيد إحياء تراث مثلاً،…
Youssef Abouzeid’s new PanSTARRS EP ‘Ghaby Ghaby Ghaby’ (Stupid, Stupid, Stupid) is a sonic and stylistic departure from the band’s previous releases, while still maintaining the echoey feedback-laden reverb-drenched hallmarks of the band’s signature indie-rock sound. The changes are derived from the introduction of a heavier bass synth sound to anchor the album alongside Abouzeid’s customary guitar work, and a change in…
عبدالرحمن أبوشلوع حين بدأت حديثي معه، أوضَح لي أن المشروع الموسيقي هو ثناءي روك -Rock Duo-، و بالرغم عن إهتمامي بمشاريعه الفنّية عموماً و دروبه المختلفة، وَجِب عليْ أن أسلط الضوء على أوبجت أوبسكيور –Object Obscure– كفريق روك بدلاً من مشروع فردي أو ثنائي، ملفتاً أهميّة لعمليّة العرض الحي على الرغم من خبرته كمهندس صوت…
This is the first part of a series of articles that will take a look at up and coming musicians from the Middle East in various genres. As such if you’re familiar with the more established artists of the region’s independent music scene you most likely will not find them here. Rather, the featured artists…
We’ve been going a little crazy running through the new site and a byproduct of this has been a set of new and updated playlists by genre (though of course we use the term quite loosely). So whatever your poison may be, may you find it on this list. Tarab Playlist: Sonorous voices, searing violins. Hip…
This should be fun. Pleased to announce that Dandin will be the music partner of Mada Masr during their Marketplace Event at the Greek Campus on Saturday, April 25th. Between the hours of 11am and 4pm the music on offer will be comprised solely of local and regional artists from the platform. The four-hour playlist will…
Every so often you chance upon an artist full of talent and promise you can’t wait to hear what’s next to come from them. One becomes more appreciative when recognising the myriad difficulties musicians face in the region. One such musician is Alexandrian native Abdelrahman Abou Shelou, known as The Chikatura. We first came across Shelou…
By Abdel-Rahman Hussein: Sometime in mid-2011 I was, uncharacteristically, in my kitchen, doing the dishes or some other menial chore. I had the television on outside in the living room, tuned into one of the political talk shows that were de rigueur viewing at the time. Despite it being a time of upheaval punctuated by…
Last week Dandin was invited by the good folk at Mada Masr to regale attendees of Vent with four hours of music spanning the globe and decades of output. Nestled within this long list were some representatives of the Middle East’s contemporary music scene, and it seemed fitting that a Dandin playlist be created specifically for them. Admittedly the…
This coming Saturday sees a music festival Dandin is very much looking forward to, boasting a lineup that includes some of the best live acts you would ever hope to see in Egypt. The Artivism Festival is the brainchild of a collective that aims to “use different art forms as tools to create social and cultural change.”…
Dandin 