Symphony #2 includes reworkings and remixes from Symphony #1 and new material composed while in residency at Hull Time Based Arts, UK 1999 and on tour 1999-2001.
Performance for fourteen dot matrix printers played by an orchestra of personal computers from the early nineties and conducted by a similarly obsolete file server, based on text files composed and orchestrated beforehand.
Track 12 (in keeping with the concept of the cd) is not simply an untitled track. The printers are not printing anything – the track simply consists of the amplified hum of all 14 printers, and then they are all manually switched off, one by one. credits released June 1, 2020
Listeners who know much of anything about Bryn Jones’ work as Muslimgauze know that he was prolific in both his work and Muhammadunize, has what could be called a classic feel to it, with a very familiar blend of drones, string instruments, and synths, and varying percussion/break-beat patterns, in turn mixed with a number of hard-to-catch vocal samples. It’s a formula used many times in the past by Jones, yet somehow he still manages to keep things just fresh enough, investing songs like the first and second “Khalifate” and especially both slamming versions of “Imad Akel” with enough unexpected touches. He incorporates the basic power of his work in the tracks as well, with both beauty and a nervy, hard-to-define tension as the songs progress.
The sound palette of Muhammadunize is very similar to his ambient-techno albums such as Mullah Said and Gun Aramaic, down to the rhythms and the trademark tanpura drones and keys in C minor. The difference is that it’s a bit more aggressive and faster-paced than the aforementioned albums, thus utilising a similar dark atmosphere to a more immediate and in-your-face effect, especially as noted by the drum-kit urban-sounding pulse of Imad Akel, one of the high points on this album. However, my favorite track here is the closer Fatah Guerrilla (also title track of the whole triple album), featuring a rapid echoed rhythm along with a barrage of percussion popping up and echoing every so often, sounding like they’re flying through the room at a quick pace; the piece also features a beautiful flute melody which combines with the busy rhythm section in an interesting way.
Recorded and mixed at Abraham Mosque, Manchester 1996. Dedicated to a Palestinian State. Free from Zionist abuse of human rights.
