Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Khalid Agag Comes of Age In "Bint Alhetta"



Khalid Agag, dubbed many many as the one hit wonder, he makes a hit song and tried to build an album around it, it rarely worked for him. His newest is Bent AlHetta, the neighborhood girl in English. You need to remember that almost all Arab marriages happen to between neighbors, where else will you meet someone and get to know them up close and personal? Okk, the title is cool, hip and makes knocks off ten years of Agag's age making him.

The album is the fruit of the labor of a dozen of well known Egyptian music icons (Ayman Bahjat Amar), but new comers have also contributed to this album (Gandhi). So that's a good sign of an artist who wants to take his music to the next step. Here is my review of the album, song by song and we hope you enjoy the album for the Khalid who has been away for some years now, maybe he can be back with some action, we do not really mind the white goatee he is sporting. He is saying I am not Tamer Hosny, I have been around the block for some time now.

01. Bent El-Hetta, sporty beat, inject some traditional instruments, Agag's vocals are still the same "good", the lyrics are fresh. The tale is very real and hit close to home. What would you do when your loved one is about to slip away from you.
02. Kan Feen, the most special lyrics, mellow music, not my style but very blue, there is not much music to talk about. Good musical arrangement.
03.Ana Gay, bring on the funk, love the opening, again Agag's vocals do not disappoint. It's where pop meets funk and both bring you a good beat. The chorus toward the end is unoriginal
04.T3abt, if you are a quitter and have to surrender in a relationship, then this song is for you, it does not cure your broken heart but rather pile on it. I know guys in high school and college will enjoy this track as they are used to been abandoned.
05. Ana El-Ghaltan, the most traditional Tarab style song on the album, love the drum, the musical instruments used keep you guessing what notes they will hit. The lyrics are bittersweet, forget but not forgive attitude.
06. Benkaml Ba'ad, the problem with pop music is that more often than not it tends to sound a bit generic and leaves you in dismissal mode after a minute of listening, the lyrics are not fresh. If you are a fan, you will accept this song, but otherwise, hit next.
07. 3any 3ank, great lyrics, it plays like a dialogue between two lovers who have to work out the bugs of their relationship. Catchy it is, the music gets better toward the middle and end. It makes me think of the beach and wanting to play around in joy.
08. Badoob, the darkest song on the album, the vocals shine here as the music does not get in the way of the artists voice. Again the musical arrangement here keeps the song interesting. The vocals move into down down then up, then down down then up.
09.Wahdy Bashr, this song sounds like a 90s pop song, against the music and the voice of the artist play in harmony, this song would have been better as a duet, it will make it wholesome. The beat is overused, but an OK song.

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