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Beirut.com

Mashrou’ Leila – El Hal Romancy Concert

6 tracks come together to produce [el Hal Romancy] E.P. Each tackling lyrically more intimate, personal, and theatrical subject matter that is less about the city and its politics proper, and more about the social residue of the city. A drag queen named Wajih on a vanity trip, a wife-to-be seeking marriage for economic stability, a melancholic revolutionary giving in to his society, and the lover of an irresponsible member of the city’s bourgeoisie, all make appearances, tell their stories, and then retire, over dense, heavily orchestrated, and sometimes punchy music. This is a collection of songs that happen in a weathered bedroom with ruffled bed sheets, stained carpeting, and a book shelf of references, while a string section plays on a rusty vinyl player to a couple of young lovers trying to survive the city.

The band had been working on the concert for months now – writing new music, collaborating with other amazing artists to produce this work and preparing every single detail to make it a special night, like their previous encounters – but this time in a place that everyone passes by every other day, but never had the chance to access and wander through – an intimate place with a lot of history – the Beirut Hippodrome.
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