With this record,
Ahlam departs from their previous Jeel (sociopolitical) lyrical stance for the more traditional Shabee Moroccan songs. Not that most American and European listeners would know this, as the lyrics are in Arabic. It maintains the general trend of Barbarity releases in its fairly hi-gloss texture of samples and technologically driven rhythms, with occasional (but not incredibly frequent) surprises like bursts of violin, dubby vocals, and reggae riddims. How much you like this depends very much on individual preference. If you favor more traditional world sounds, this is just too much like Western dancefloor music to cut it; if you are coming from the dance crowd, it's certainly a lot more unusual than the typical dance record. ~ Richie Unterberger