Mawwal

Artist Information

Biography

Jim Matus studied guitar and composition at Berklee College of Music and privately with Pat Metheny and John Scofield. He is the creator of the world fusion bands Paranoise and Mawwal, which have won him critical praise internationally. He has worked in the studio with musicians Don Cherry, Anthony Jackson and Soft Machine's Hugh Hopper. He has produced many world music projects in his studio in Hadley, MA. (www.mawwalmusic.com) “Jim Matus has taken the style that Peter Gabriel made so famous a few years back and taken it a step further…

Instrumentation

Jim Matus - vocals, guitar, laouto, saz
Jill O'Brien - vocals
Joe O'brien - bass, vocals
Mike Keyes - drums

Discography

PRIVATE POWER - 1999 (Ancient Records)
ISHQ - 2001 (Ancient Records)
BLACK FLIES - 2007 (Ancient Records)
NEW RELEASE:
This is all there is, There is no other place
-MAWWAL'S music has been played on College and independent radio throughout the world.

Official Website

http://www.mawwalmusic.com

Audio

• Ishq
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• Tara Torna
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• Haq Ali
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Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• Hartford Advocate [+ Show ]
  

  “Percy Jones' turgid bassline yanked my attention straight into Mawwal's album opener "Tara Torna." ...“Percy Jones' turgid bassline yanked my attention straight into Mawwal's album opener "Tara Torna." "That's allowed?!" I thought as his monster chord brought resolution to a slippery pitch-bend from the female chorus. Thirty-six seconds into this disc and I was already bugging out. On paper, Mawwal reads like a world fusion band, which makes them sound boring. Many world bands lack a galvanizing, listenable reason to stick various musical traditions in the blender. Mawwal, however, is the product of a firmly grounded vision. Band mastermind Jim Matus weaves traditional lyrics from Bulgaria, Libya, Sufi songs, and Malinke chants into lush rock arrangements. At the same time, he casts the music against a backdrop of radical political dissent, and roots it in compassion, brotherhood, and anger”. -Dan Barry/ HARTFORD ADVOCATE

• Best of 2007 [+ Show ]
  

  “For the first impression of Black Flies, it's hard to get beyond "wow!"... For me, this is what "pr...“For the first impression of Black Flies, it's hard to get beyond "wow!"... For me, this is what "progressive" music is all about.... For my taste, this is album is just about perfect in every way. The compositions are intricate and engaging and the musical performances are nothing short of spectacular.... a fascinating brew. Bumping this album off my "Best of 2007" list this year will be quite a feat, Black Flies is essential!
  
  

• Valley Advocate [+ Show ]
  

  “From the first track, listening to Mawwal's this is all there is, there is no other place is like a...“From the first track, listening to Mawwal's this is all there is, there is no other place is like absorbing some bizarre hallucinogenic compound through your armpits in a Waziristan sweat lodge. Drawing heavily on traditional Middle Eastern/ South Asian music and academic icons like Joe Zawinul and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the contemporary arrangement of these rooted-in-tradition pieces is, well, seriously cool.”
  
  

• tastiest bass licks in contemporary fusion [+ Show ]
  

  “Woven among Libyan folk melodies, Tuvan overtone “throat singing,” and Pakistani qawwali performanc...“Woven among Libyan folk melodies, Tuvan overtone “throat singing,” and Pakistani qawwali performances, Percy Jones’s fretless growl buttresses this assembly of compositions and arrangements by sonic architect Jim Matus. Percy’s earthy tone and free-flowing phrasing are exceptional throughout. Jones and the album’s other bassist, Tyler Van Ostrand, square off on Yurodivy, trading some the tastiest bass licks in contemporary fusion”.
  

• BLACK FLIES Five Stars [+ Show ]
  

  "Their sound is thick and abundant, often stormy and always impassioned and intense. Black Flies is ..."Their sound is thick and abundant, often stormy and always impassioned and intense. Black Flies is truly a hearty feast for the ears. Mawwal embodies the epitome of world fusion while still winning the hearts of any purist with their treatment of culture and tradition from East to West.” FIVE STARS -CDBABY
  

• THIS IS ALL THERE IS THERE IS NO OTHER PLACE [+ Show ]
  

  “I don’t know why I didn’t slide this one into the player the moment it arrived. Boom! Right off the...“I don’t know why I didn’t slide this one into the player the moment it arrived. Boom! Right off the bat it grabbed me with drums the size of a continent, massed vocals and a bit later electric guitar and bass. And that bass! The unmistakable sound sent me running for the credits, yes, there it was: Percy jones. By the time the electric violin entered I was hooked. This was world fusion the way it should be done”.
  

• Review of BLACK FLIES album [+ Show ]
  

  "For fans of Peter Gabriel’s brand of world music, Mawwal should be the next step, as this is the mo..."For fans of Peter Gabriel’s brand of world music, Mawwal should be the next step, as this is the most advanced fusion of Middle Eastern and western progressive music we’ve heard." -KENISIS

• Mawwal blends East and West [+ Show ]
  

  "Inspired by musicians like Peter Gabriel, Karsh Kale, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and Hamaza el Din, Ma..."Inspired by musicians like Peter Gabriel, Karsh Kale, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and Hamaza el Din, Mawwal takes world music in an entirely new direction. The music manages to sound familiar yet new.....music unlike any I've ever heard before". - Sheryl Hunter

• Peter Gabriel's explorations into the music of other cultures [+ Show ]
  

  “If you have any familiarity at all with Peter Gabriel's explorations into the music of other cultu... “If you have any familiarity at all with Peter Gabriel's explorations into the music of other cultures, MAWWAL is what that could've evolved into, pushed further by a quantum leap. "Black Flies" is at once experimental & passionate. Traditional pieces from Libya, Syria & Yemen are explored and then blown wide open with amazing arrangements by Jim that allow western perspectives to swim & mingle in such an intense yet flowing way. The results are spectacular. I'd urge anyone reading this page to check out MAWWAL (as well as Jim Matus' other band PARANOISE). This CD has captivated me in one evening and it might just snare you too!”
  

Setlist

We typically do an hour set. We can play for up to 3hours of original music. Typical set:
Youmalla
This Is All There Is
Ho Gaye
Bela Sehida
Ishq
Ya Leyl A'ah
Monuments
Tara Torna
Haq Ali
Black Flies

Ya Gamar

Basic Requirements

Calendar