Every so often we need a dose of music that really transforms us to an exotic place far away from our normal surroundings, especially if we’re currently stuck in rush hour on the London Underground. This journey can often be achieved with just some lavish idiosyncratic Middle Eastern instruments or spiritual New Age ambience but it’s even more magical when this power of transformation can be reached by listening just to a voice.
Tamino-Amir Moharam Fouad, performing under his first name alone Tamino, has one of the most stunning and spine-tingling voices of the year. Comparable to Rufus Wainwright and Thom Yorke in its shivering vulnerability, it also contains otherworldly Arabic tones in his unbelievable vocal range of falsetto and deep mournful baritone that bring out his Egyptian and Lebanonese heritage. Tamino is inspired by his grandfather Muharram Fouad, an Egyptian movie star from The Golden Age of cinema. Fouad was known as “the sound of the Nile” and was celebrated for his unique character and flavour and for not copying other musicians of his time.
The decision to follow his own singular path can be labelled for the half-Belgian, half-Egyptian Tamino as well, who at only 21 years young, sounds different from those of a similar age. He sounds like an old soul carrying years of hurt and stories of hardship and has an aim to bring the sincerity of Eastern music, that’s currently lost in the West.
Opening track ‘Habibi’ is a great introduction to Tamino. Arabic for “my love“, it’s raw, romantic and intimate and imagines him performing next to a single candle light in an echoey empty dark room. Simple melodic strokes and lyrics such as “though he’s not alone, he fears to never love another” and “something died within a soul. Left the eyes to rust” accompany a captivating Matt Bellamy-like evolution of vocal emotion; deep reflectiveness turns into desperate sombre until eventually he is on the verge of crying.
This mood is carried on the evocative ‘Indigo Night’ – a track that contains Radiohead bassist Colin Greenwood – but is even better because it contains an interesting tale of a naive boy whose mind is opened during a night of experiences: “The girls take him up on a hill. It’s an Indigo night, there’s a chill. So many of them, they all sing. About the pleasure of life.” It’s one of many tracks that show how effective Tamino’s voice is even when he is just wordless humming or singing non-lexical vocables.
His skill at storytelling on ‘Indigo Night’, is also effective on the final track ‘Persephone’. A song that initially sounds simple but like the character in its song, the Underworld ruler Hades, it’s deceiving, as it contains subtle haunting noises in its background. Perhaps reflecting the loneliness of the netherworld.
The lyrics tell the mythical story of Persephone. She was the daughter of Greek God Zeus who was kidnapped by Hades when being tricked into plucking an enticing Narcissus flower. The track seems to be from the point of view of Hades who confesses to his plan first in a cold way: “Yes my love, I confess to you. I am only here to break your heart in two. The very flower you chose that day. It’s only task was to decay.”
But then Hades interestingly attempts to gain sympathy: “Indeed, it’s wrong to keep you near me. One could call me cruel and deceiving. But in your sacred air I am full of light. Your loving arms are the true delight“.
It’s not just Tamino’s lyrics and voice that take you on a journey. There are many times when Amir contains Arabic instrumentation that transform the listener to the landscapes of The Mummy or Aladdin. This is explored with the help of chamber orchestra Nagham Zikrayat – a collective group of refugees from Iraq and Syria that have been performing since 2013 in Belgium. They play instruments such as the tapping of the Darabuka drum and the string instrument Oud. The best moments of theirs are on the sweeping wilderness of ‘So It Goes’, the intense ‘w.o.t.h (the will of this heart)’, the alluring middle bridge of ‘Easy Time’ and the beautiful ‘Intervals‘.
Amir is not perfect, as the lyrics aren’t consistently engaging and there are some uninspiring moments such as ‘Verses’, ‘Cigar’ and ‘Tummy’ but what’s consistent in quality for sure is his spellbinding voice. A pleasant, world-travelling and welcoming experience every time.
Amir is out now on Communion Group Ltd.
