Sometimes, artists use a set of lavish titles to describe themselves, their musical concept, and the music itself. Often, though, listening to their music, it is hard to grasp how much some or any of these titles contribute to the quality of their music, or lack of it for that matter.
So, when an artist, in this case Palestinian-American Omar Ahmad, describes himself as a composer, producer, DJ, and sound artist, it can arouse some initial skepticism, particularly when you consider the fact that his latest release Inheritance, is actually his debut. Not only that, Ahmad is actually all self-taught, possibly doubling that skepticism.
Yet, when you listen to the album itself, you realise that there is quite a solid ground on which Ahmad dubs himself as a composer, producer, sound artist, and DJ.
It requires some serious talent to be able to create inventive musical concepts without any formal musical education, that is exactly what Ahmad does here.
Without being formally aware of any musical formulas, rules, or genre boundaries, Ahmad approaches his music with a child-like enthusiasm and innovation, coupled with extensive experience as a resident DJ at Laylit, the largest and fastest-growing contemporary Middle Eastern and North African music community in New York.
The results are no less than excellent, with Ahmad at times recalling concepts by such electronic innovators as Fennesz and Ryuichi Sakamoto, and coming up with one of the more intriguing debuts of 2023.
