The atmosphere of an album is particularly important when it comes to instrumental music, because oftentimes the only thing to focus on is the atmosphere itself. That's how it is throughout the vast majority of Barzakh, but rest assured: Anouar Brahem knows how to lay down a tangible and palatable atmosphere. Musically, it's very minimal African folk music with a nice influence from Arabic music. The first six tracks consist of only acoustic guitar and even after that tracks are made up entirely of percussion, though there are a couple of tracks that include acoustic guitar, percussion, and strings. The atmosphere is a calm one rather than tense, and due to the African/Arabic flavors that are so pungent here, it feels like relaxing on a hammock in the middle of a sandy middle-class African city. Needless to say, it's just as beautiful as it is immersive, and it's records like these that make Brahem one of the most well-renowned and recognizable names in African/Arabian folk.
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