Check out ‘Block 9 Creative Retreat Palestine’
Brian Eno, Roisin Murphy and more have teamed up to release an album recorded at Banksy’s Walled Off Hotel in Palestine. Hear it on NME first below.
The graffiti artist financed the creation of the hotel last year for the 100th anniversary of the British control of Palestine. Open to the public, the rooms are designed by Banksy, Sami Musa and Dominique Petrin.
Now as a mark of solidarity in activism against the wall, a host of artists and collaborators have come together for ‘Block 9 Creative Retreat Palestine’. The album was recorded earlier this year in February, when all of the artists involved were staying at Banksy’s Walled Off Hotel in Bethlehem Palestine.
The tracklist is:
1. Brian Eno With Trio Joubran – ‘Stones’
2. Mashrou Leila with Roisin Murphy – ‘Salam’
3. FRED Feat EBS – ‘Wisam Jam’
4. Akram Abdulfattah – ‘Cave’
5. The Black Madonna and Wassim Qassis – ‘Jerusalem Is A Mountain’
6. Block9 Music Dept – ‘Maqam Hijaz In Dub’ (feat Akram & EBS)
7. Sigsaly – ‘Bread And Concrete’
Block9 Creative Retreat Palestine by Block9
“In an ideal world, people are going to hear the music and go, ‘That’s Brian Eno with these oud players—what the fuck’s an oud? I love it, what’s the story here?’,” organiser Alyssa Nitchun told Resident Advisor about the album. “So it becomes this tiny pinprick entry point to tell a huge story through human eyes.”
Block9 co-founder Steve Gallagher added: “It’s political, inasmuch as it encourages people to take action and participate in the world, as opposed to being a passive bystander. It’s about taking some fucking action. Engage.”
Meanwhile, Banksy recently unveiled a mural in New York to show support for a Turkish artist who was jailed for three years over a painting.
Zehra Dogan was reportedly imprisoned last year for her painting which depicted the remains of a vastly damaged Turkish city.
Banksy’s mural is a powerful reflection of the time she has spent behind bars, with a wall of black tally marks representing both jail bars and the duration of her imprisonment so far.