The Berlin Session

Nevermind the Wait, Here Comes The Berlin Session: The first studio album of its kind since the golden days of Mogadishu came to a halt three decades ago. Glamorous discos and beachfront stages disappeared as the city was bombed to the ground. Like a sleeping giant patiently awaiting its revival, we can finally hear a new recording by the living representatives of that distinct era so far heard only on reissues. This record captures the historic reunion which took place in 2019 in Germany’s capital. London-based Dur-Dur Band Int. - itself an eight-piece powerhouse of Somali live-music - is backing three legendary singers. Sounding equally Asian as it does African, a definitive proto-Reggae groove channels the titans as they devotedly draw the bridge between the sorrow of all that was lost and the delight of a magic which survived. Let’s Not Talk About Sadness, As The New Album Has Arrived: Tears are in the eyes of Xabiib Sharaabi, nicknamed the Somali King of Pop. Deprived overnight of both glamour and friends, the war in his homeland had sent him into exile. He found himself stranded and estranged in Sweden. At long last reunited with his musical teammates after thirty solemn years of anonymity, they preview the hall which perfectly resembles Somalia’s national theatre. In three days, Berlin’s HKW will provide the setting for a triumphant comeback. Fueled with a restored sense of pride, the freshly reunited band sets up in a Neukölln loft. Female vocalist Faadumina Hilowle inaugurates the space with an invitation to kickass: “Let’s shake off the dust, boys!” (Inta ka hurguf). These words are destined to become the opening statement of The Berlin Session, the first studio album by a complete Somali ensemble since the golden days of Mogadishu came to a halt three decades ago.