Reviews of Habibi Funk 031, Kayatibu, and The Good Ones
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Impossible not to feel invigorated
Omar Souleyman
[Stuart Sevastos/CC]
SIMON DUFF relishes the cross contamination of Damien Hirst’s greatest hits by street artists from France and the US
In view of the grooming gangs inquiry, SIMON PARSONS feels the relevance of this powerful examination of trauma suffered at Medomsley Youth Detention Centre
JOHN GREEN doubts the motivations of a US war photographer who never questions why, or for whom, she is producing images of imperialist conflict
MARIA DUARTE reviews Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere, Hedda, The Mastermind, and Regretting You
TONY CONWAY welcomes a thrilling and concise history of Hope not Hate, that is also a manual full of tactical advice
PAUL DONOVAN welcomes an inspiring account of living with deafness that has important lessons for the treatment of deaf people in today’s UK
Omar Souleyman
Jazz Cafe
A SINGLE A-board sits outside the Jazz Cafe emblazoned with the words Global Dance Icon — Omar Souleyman. More of a nod to the dry humour of this most beloved of Syrian singers than a sign of an ego-tripping diva, though Souleyman truly has become something of a cult sensation.
Hailing from humble origins in the village of Ra’s al-’Ayn near the Syria–Turkey border, he began as a part-time singer at weddings where the dabke is performed, a traditional folk music performed during line-dances and popular on celebratory occasions.
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