Radiodervish - The door visitors

"We want to open new doors, new horizons of consciousness, to understand ourselves better". So say Radiodervish, who had already worked together in their previous outfit Al Darawish. The cultural difference in their origins gives rise to songs conceived as small laboratories within which gateways and passages between East and West are revealed, their traces marked by the symbols and myths of the cultures of the Mediterranean, a borderland that unites even as it divides.

"Dar wish", in Persian, means "visitors of doors". And they – Michele Lobaccaro (from Puglia, bassist) and Nabil ben Salameh (Palestinian, singer) – have passed through many of them to arrive at this project, which blends Mediterranean traditions from Puglia with Arabic sonorities in a weave that is at once melodic, electronic and acoustic. Lobaccaro explains: "The fusion between our two worlds – Lobaccaro explains – stems from a clash that, historically, was harsh and dramatic. But in the end common roots emerge, those of the Old Testament world, of the three great religions of the Mediterranean. Just think of Neapolitan song, which uses the quarter-tones typical of Arabic music".

To merge the worlds of these two "visitors of doors", then, nothing could be better than radio, "a gadget that, through its antennas, brings people together without the need for a visa", as Nabil puts it, in perfect Italian. Radiodervish won the Premio Ciampi for best debut album. And to present their record, released by Consorzio produttori indipendenti, they chose Bari's juvenile prison. "Half the inmates were Albanian", they recall, "and they felt the affinities between our music and theirs".

Language against language is a compelling debut, full of evocative tracks, such as the poignant "Hennah", dedicated to the Algerian women who were victims of the massacres, and the striking opening track "Belzebù", centred on the story of the fallen angel told in a tale by Gurdjieff.

In March 2001 they played an acoustic concert in Bari, in a deconsecrated 10th-century church turned auditorium. The concert, in which Radiodervish were joined by Alessandro Pipino on keyboards and Giovanna Buccarella on cello, was organised in support of the work of the association "Salaam Ragazzi dell'Olivo" with Palestinian children in the al-Fawwār refugee camp in the Palestinian West Bank. The show was such a success that Radiodervish gave six encore performances, and part of the material recorded on that occasion gave rise to their second album, Acoustic, distributed with the newspaper "La Gazzetta del Mezzogiorno" and later reissued with "Il manifesto".

In 2002 Radiodervish confirmed their talent with a new album, Centro del mundo, a work of great elegance, blending Middle Eastern atmospheres with delicate rhythmic and instrumental inlays. Across fourteen tracks, Michele Lobaccaro and Nabil Ben Salameh gather together the evolution and artistic maturation of their music. The line-up now also features the keyboards of Alessandro Pipino, percussionist Zohar Fresco, and notable guests such as Noa and Massimo Zamboni.

Their battle to break down every barrier continues on its course, from the splendid "Cairo Blues", with Zamboni's beautiful, low-flying guitar line, to the linguistic babel of the title track, from the radiant, bouzouki-driven melody of "Erevan" (with Salameh singing in Arabic) to the grace of the refined "L'esigenza" and "Le Temps". A few techno pulses, finally, add extra sparkle to "Acid Baby".

A mature record, then, that confirms the sensitivity and elegance of one of the best Italian ensembles working in world music.

In April 2004, Radiodervish released their fourth record, In Search Of Simurgh, produced by Saro Cosentino, who had previously worked alongside Peter Gabriel and Franco Battiato. Mediterranean sonorities and ancient traditions once again merge into a sonic blend, this time inspired by the literary work "Il Verbo Degli Uccelli" (Mantiq at-Tayr) by the Persian Sufi mystic Farid ad-din Attar (12th century).

The ten tracks narrate, through Radiodervish's beguiling melodies, the stories of the "Hoopoe", of "The Phoenix" and of all the mystical symbolism tied to these images. Flight is thus the central theme of a work that renews this successful Afro-European alchemy, alternating sinuous instrumentals with sung pieces of undeniable charm ("La Falena e La Candela", in Italian and English, but also "Amira" and "Layla e Majnun", performed in Arabic).

With Amara terra mia, in 2006, Radiodervish capture the last ten years of their live career on record, alongside a theatrical show created with actor Giuseppe Battiston. Among the tracks, besides numerous band classics, there are also two covers of fellow southerner Domenico Modugno (the title track "Amara terra mia" and "Tu sì 'na cosa grande").

Nabil's beguiling voice elegantly guides listeners through the 20 tracks, supported by keyboards and violins. The arrangements are deliberately spare and essential. The accompanying DVD offers footage of the theatrical show and the video for the title track, directed by Franco Battiato.

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