Argan

Hailing from the Souss region of Morocco, Argan thrust traditional Berber melodies into the modern musical spectrum on their second album. Using both traditional and contemporary instrumentation, Argan merge the sounds of their past with the influence of late ‘60s American rock, which came to their communities when artists like Hendrix and their hippie followers found refuge in a warm culture and cheap accessible drugs. Unlike most Arabic music, Berber melodies use a scale that can be integrated easily into American blues, making for this unique rock fusion. The album’s title couldn’t be any more fitting as an ancient Moroccan tradition gets supercharged with aggressive electric fuzz guitar, Moroccan banjo, driving percussion and programmed beats. The vocals and instrumentation stay effectively raw giving these tracks an edge that’s usually lost when the past gets a contemporary makeover. South Moroccan Motor Berber conjures visions of punk, industrial, techno and rock all given the hyped up Berber treatment. A sonic trip spanning geography and time unlike any other.