Aicha, by Maalem Mahmoud Gania

Aicha

by Maalem Mahmoud Gania

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Anthony Magen trance music is evergreen Favorite track: La Ilha Illa Allah.

Family Feet Well, isn’t this all kinds of great. Love the album cover too. Favorite track: La Ilha Illa Allah.

The Soulvendor My favourite 2020 record! Favorite track: Al Boudali.

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Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Purchasable with gift card

£6 GBP or more
First pressing (500 copies, black vinyl)
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
First pressing comes with a high quality print of the album artwork

Includes unlimited streaming of Aicha via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Sold Out
First pressing (500 copies, black vinyl) LP & Tote Bag Bundle
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
First pressing (500 copies, black vinyl), comes with a high quality print of the album artwork.
Plus!
High quality 6oz fair trade black cotton tote bag with Hive Mind Logo hand screen-printed with love

Includes unlimited streaming of Aicha via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Sold Out
2nd pressing 12" black vinyl
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Limited to 300 copies
Black vinyl, reverse board printed 350 gsm sleeve with printed inner featuring extensive sleeve notes by Tim Abdellah Fuson (Moroccan Tape Stash)
THE SECOND PRESSING DOES NOT CONTAIN THE PRINT

Includes unlimited streaming of Aicha via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Sold Out

1.	La Ilha Illa Allah 08:58	buy track
2.	Lalla Aicha 07:03	buy track
3.	Assamaoui 07:10	buy track
4.	Al Boudali 08:04	buy track
5.	Bangara Bangara 06:22	buy track
6.	El Bahraoui 08:04	buy track

about

We are celebrating our tenth release by bringing the label full circle, right back where we started from. We're excited to announce that we've once again worked with the Gania family of Essaouira to bring you another reissue of the music of the undisputed King of Gnawa music, the late Maalem Mahmoud Gania. It feels like the perfect time to release this spiritual music, specifically played to heal and to cure us of our ills, as the world is in the grip of a viral pandemic and powerful forces seem to be polarising people all around the globe. We hope that Aicha will enable you to carve out some healing space in amongst the chaos of the world.

Aicha was previously released on cassette in Morocco only in the late 1990's. Maalem Mahmoud Gania was a particularly prolific artist recording for many labels in Morocco and many details about the recording of this particular album or the people involved are destined to remain a mystery. However, we do know the album was recorded in the Gania's home town of Essaouira with only a small and intimate group of supporting musicians. The resulting album, after the dizzying intensity of the opening song, offers more relaxed, laid back interpretations of the Gnawa ritual repertoire, and a deeper, more gentle sound than our previous Gania release, Colours of the Night. The album shines a light on Mahmoud's virtuoso guimbri playing and mastery of Gnawa songcraft, and is a standout amongst his many cassette releases.

The album comes with extensive sleeve notes written by Tim Abdellah Fuson, Berkeley scholar and curator of the excellent Moroccan Tape Stash blog.
The first pressing of this release comes with a print of the album cover.

credits

released October 9, 2020

Remastered by Julian Tardo, Church Road Studios, Hove
Sleeve notes: Tim Abdellah Fuson
Art & Design: Theo Payne
Original photography: Sarah Hickson

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about

Maalem Mahmoud Gania Essaouira, Morocco

Born in 1951 in Essaouira, Mahmoud Gania came from one of the great Gnawa families. A respected singer and guimbri player he was one of the most prolific recording musicians in Morocco. From the 1970s until his death in 2015 he released many albums for a variety of Moroccan labels as well as recording with artists as diverse as Pharoah Sanders, Peter Brotzmann, James Holden and Floating Points. ... more

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