SHAFIQ MORTON |
DESERT ROSE, A HIDDEN TREASURE
DESCRIBING South African group Desert Rose, especially to
one who hasn’t heard their inspiring sounds, is difficult. This is no Sami
Yusuf spin-off, or yet another Rayhan clone. There is nothing “pop” about
Desert Rose, yet their music has massive appeal.
Desert Rose – fronted by Lynne Holmes and Yusuf Ganief from
Cape Town – is inimitably Desert Rose. As a Muslim journalist I’m familiar with
the world Islamic musical landscape, and I’ve never heard artists anywhere quite
like them.
This is because there aren’t many groups performing
Sufi-Arabic-African cross-over in the defining way that Desert Rose does. Desert Rose’s music, laced with raw emotion, reaches
the innermost depths of the soul and then lifts it to the highest aesthetic
station.
For Desert Rose, loads of hard work, experimentation (and
consultation with scholars) has led to their truly unique synthesis of soothing
electronic resonance, African instrumentalisation and sweet vocalisation.
On their latest CD, Tariqat (the Path), one is taken on a
journey of evocative sound and vocalisation. The first track, Bismillah (in the name of God), begins slowly
and then evolves into a percussional rhythm, fading slowly and peacefully as it
nears its end.
It’s a fitting start to a truly inspirational session of
listening. One of my favourite tracks is Remembrance
of My Lord, hauntingly moving in its arrangement and hankering for a taste
of the Divine.
On the other hand, Ya
Hayyu Ya Qayyum is a track that makes one jump out of one’s skin.
Underscored by classic African percussion, its addictive rhythms make the heart
dance with joy.
But the most appealing track by far is Ya Rahman, now something of a standard for Desert Rose. Here Yusuf
Ganief’s voice soars to sublime heights, and one is taken away to a place of
harmony, light and peace.
Without doubt, South Africa’s Desert Rose is one of the
Islamic world’s hidden treasures.
Listen, you won’t be disappointed.
14 Feb 2013. Review of
Desert Rose’s album, Tariqat (The Path) by Shafiq Morton.
Shafiq Morton, author and photo-journalist voted
one of the 500 most influential Muslims in the world by the Royal Islamic
Strategies Centre, 2009-2012.
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