Khaled Kurbeh
Likulli Fadāin Eqāéh (لكلّ فضاءٍ إيقاعه)

Likulli Fadāin Eqāéh لكلّ فضاءٍ إيقاعه [to each space its own rhythm] 2019–23

a landscape of ever amusing contradictions on unstretched canvas: – of predictable rhythms (day and night, high tide and low tide, routine and intuition, rent and bureaucracy) and unpredictable rhythms (good fortune, bad poetry, chance, mistakes and chaos).

Berlin-based Syrian musician Khaled Kurbeh makes his Research Records debut with Likulli Fadāin Eqāéh, a tapestry of soundscapes written, performed and recorded across four years as part of his practice muhawalāt [attempts, variations] and hawāmesh [margins]: an outlet of gestures, sonic footnotes and observations from the everyday.

Kurbeh’s first release in seven years departs from his largely acoustic debut, Aphorisms, a collaboration with oud player Raman Khalaf and ensemble with elements of maqām and jazz.

Likulli Fadāin Eqāéh offers a collection of 10 electroacoustic compositions – they’re brooding and experimental with hints of musique concrète. The tracklist implies a mapping or an itinerary. Field recordings of swallows and the snapping and un-shelling of sunflower seeds on interlude Nuzha I [Excursion I] are countered by sparse composition of low-end synth, harmonium, upright piano and prepared fender rhodes played with mallets on Darb I–II [Path I–II]. Patterns of cymbals and agitated bells appear on Jauqét Ajrās [Choir of Bells], while currents of bowed strings shiver and stutter on al-Ajrāf [The Cliffs]. The release captures four years of overlapping sonic wanders, finely balancing tensions of harmony and dissonance, stillness and resonance, texture and rhythm – recorded inside and outside.

The gatefold vinyl features artworks by Ida Lawrence and includes a booklet of 10 painted variations of the one scene. On the outer cover, paths stretch under a dramatically accented and vivid sky; while inside, the same landscape appears over and over in another light.

Likulli Fadāin Eqāéh لكلّ فضاءٍ إيقاعه [to each space its own rhythm], is set for release on July 18th 2025 via Research Records, Naarm/Melbourne. A follow up solo piano album by Kurbeh, recorded in his studio in Kreuzberg, Berlin, will be released later this year.
credits
released July 18, 2025

Mastered by Bo Kondren at Calyx Mastering, Berlin.
Artwork by Ida Lawrence.
Graphic Design by Rik Watkinson.
Composed, recorded and mixed by Khaled Kurbeh.
Released by Research Records and muhawalāt © 2025.
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