Tropikal Camel - Awakening Spirits (2019)

“Those are the spirits of my ancestors calling from the Mellah of Meknes, from the mountains of Kurdistan. The unheard voices of my culture, that was taken from me. I shall talk to the spirits, I will heal the wounds. I was asleep, now I am awaken.”

Berlin based, Jerusalem pioneer Roi Assayag aka Tropikal Camel serves up his fantastic new album, ‘Awakening Spirits’ on Brussels based label Rebel Up Records, distilling 20 years of musical experience.

The album title ‘Awakening Spirits’ is a wordplay: in Hebrew & Arabic, winds, spirits & ghosts are the same word - Ruaah. This title is polysemic: spirits are representing the mystic research that is eternal, winds are representing drama and conflict , ghosts are the voices from the past... the word awakening symbolizes the future.

Makom in Hebrew, Maqam in Arabic, which means ‘place’ but is also the name of the melodic system of Arabic music, theory which Roi Assayag has taught himself from youtube tutorials, trying to deepen his connection with the melodies that opened his soul. In those quarter tones he found the drama that he is so connected to. One that is making him feel home.