Sama’a

Description

[Ahmed] return with سماع [Sama’a] (Audition) — their first studio recording and the first of two releases from sessions at North London’s Fish Factory. Since forming in 2014, the quartet have reimagined the music of Ahmed Abdul-Malik, fusing his cross-cultural jazz vision with their own forward-thinking improvisations.

Working with engineer Benedic Lamdin, the group recorded live in the Fish Factory’s high-ceilinged room, preserving their on-stage chemistry while exploring new sonic perspectives. For the first time, they could sit together between takes and shape their sound for the listener rather than the audience — a key shift in their creative process.

The album revisits Abdul-Malik’s 1958 landmark Jazz Sahara, a fusion of Arabic and North African modes with late-Fifties jazz. Recorded in single takes, سماع [Sama’a] reworks the entire suite, transforming ‘Farah ’Alaiyna’ into a driving, kinetic piece while unveiling previously unrecorded compositions ‘Ya Annas [Oh, People]’ and ‘Isma’a [Listen]’.

The result is a radiant, exploratory record — four interlocking pieces that stretch and shimmer with the imagination that defines [Ahmed]’s remarkable sound world.