Hamas Arc

by Ned RaggettA slightly odd release even for Muslimgauze, Hamas Arc consists of two tracks from the then just-released Vote Hezbollah album and five from the otherwise unreleased Shekel of Israeli Occupation. To top it all off, purchase of Arc provided a coupon to send in, along with a DAT, to get a copy of yet another release, Satyajit Eye. All this said, the album itself is a not-bad précis of Muslimgauze in 1993; "Farsi" and "Zindabad" from Hezbollah are just as fine here as they were on the original, while the five new tracks include some definite winners. The first "Jerusalem Knife" starts quietly until building into a rush of acoustic Arabic percussion, which is slightly added to over the course of the track and softly tweaked with echoes at points. Add expected elements like bell chimes and the buried sound of flutes and other instruments, and the result is a blast. "Khan Younis" floats in on a semi-dub beat, taking a softer approach but one that is nonetheless very involving, with subliminal keyboards and what even sounds like hints of electric guitar wafting through the tune. The first "Yasser Arafat's Radio" takes a blasted, empty approach, with nothing but sudden electronic bloops and bleeps stabbing through an echo-laden loop of ambience that is not so far removed from the likes of Godflesh or Scorn; the second song is a briefer piece reliant on a distorted vocal wail and dry, hollow percussion combined with shrieking sounds that rise and fall in the mix.