Latest news with #Kabyle
CairoScene
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- CairoScene
Wewantsounds Label Reissues Les Abrains' Coveted 1983 ‘Album No 1' LP
An underground staple of Algerian-Kabyle rock, Les Abrains' cult 1983 LP gets its first-ever reissue. May 30, 2025 Paris-based record label Wewantsounds has reissued a rare private press of Les Abrains' highly sought-after 1983 LP 'Album No. 1' for the first time ever. Formed in France in the late 1960s by two young Algerian Kabyle workers, Shamy El Vaz and Karim Abdenour, Les Abrains is one of the pioneers of the Amazigh freedom rock sound in the late 70s to early 80s. Their unique blend of early psych-rock with Kabyle rock, funk and reggae has positioned them as one of the most influential figures in the North African music scene and beyond. Curated by Cheb Gero, who recently compiled the Sweet Rebels Rai set for Wewantsounds, 'Album No.1' (also known as Id Ed Was) showcases a masterful range of various sounds imbued with the Kabyle rock soul, from the reggae-infused cult classic 'Avehri' to the funk-driven 'Achethkhi' and the irresistibly groovy instrumental 'Thadoukli'. Originally recorded in Paris, the record was initially self-released and distributed exclusively within the Kabyle and Algerian communities in France and the Maghreb. Wewantsounds Records reissued the album with remastered audio by Colorsound Studio in Paris, the original artwork, and a two-page insert with new liner notes –in French and English–by the acclaimed Algerian journalist Rabah Mezouane. This also comes as part of the label's program dedicated to reissuing rare old gems from the Algerian music scene.
Ya Biladi
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
Algeria arrests historian amidst UAE tensions and controversial Amazigh remarks
DR Estimated read time: 1' Following its statement targeting the United Arab Emirates, Algeria has arrested historian Mohamed Amine Belghit. He is accused of «undermining national unity», «inciting hatred», and «using information technology for propaganda that harms human dignity», according to a statement from the public prosecutor. «His remarks run counter to constitutional values relating to national unity, state sovereignty, and social cohesion», the statement added. After appearing before an investigating judge, Belghit was placed in provisional detention. In an interview aired on April 28 by the Emirati channel Sky News Arabia, Belghit claimed that the Amazigh movement was «created by French and Zionist intelligence services». Yesterday, the High Commission for Amazighity (HCA), an official body, condemned his comments. In a statement, the HCA denounced the remarks as «hate speech» that falls outside the bounds of free expression, calling them «a betrayal of the martyrs' memory» and «an affront to the spirit of November 1st». Officially recognized political parties such as the Socialist Forces Front (FFS) and the Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD) also voiced their outrage. The arrest of a figure previously considered close to the regime comes as Algeria has declared a state of general mobilization. The support of the Kabyle population is seen as crucial by the government in Algiers. In response, Ferhat Mehenni, president of the Movement for the Self-Determination of Kabylie (MAK), stated that «Kabylie is not concerned by the general mobilization». As a reminder, Algeria has previously accused Morocco, France, and Israel of financially and militarily backing Kabyle separatist claims.
The National
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
May physical media picks, from indigenous Algerian funk to Graydon Carter's memoir
As physical media continues its comeback, The National rounds up the best releases across film, music, art and more. Algeria has a rich musical heritage – much of which the world has yet to discover. For instance, The music of the Kabyle people, indigenous to the north of the country, features some of the funkiest grooves in North Africa. Curious? Pick up Album No 1 by Kabyle group Les Abranis, a hidden gem released in 1983 and long circulated only within Algerian communities in France and the Maghreb region. While the band was popular in Algeria, they also faced opposition from the country's authorities, who viewed them as a societal threat due to their use of the Kabyle language, instead of Arabic. Reissued for the first time since its original release by Wewantsounds, this is a must-have for fans of so-called habibi funk. William Mullally, arts and culture editor I absolutely love Chilean-American author Isabel Allende – both Of Love and Shadows (De amor y de sombra) and The House of the Spirits (La casa de los espiritus) are novels I have come back to many times over the years. This May, she is releasing a new novel, My Name Is Emilia del Valle (Mi nombre es Emilia del Valle). Set in San Francisco and Chile in the 19th century, the story follows the eponymous Emilia Del Valle, daughter of an Irish nun, who is abandoned by her Chilean aristocrat partner. Emilia grows up to be a writer forced to publish her work under a male pseudonym and later as a journalist. Her work eventually takes her to Chile, where she sets out to uncover her family's roots. Farah Andrews, head of features Anytime I hear the expression 'they don't make 'em like they used to' I think of Graydon Carter, the legendary Canadian editor of Vanity Fair and Life. The brilliantly titled When the Going Was Good is his new memoir and it offers a lavish, name-dropping romp through the golden age of magazine publishing. From the hallways of Time in the 1970s to the seemingly endless budgets of Vanity Fair in its heyday, Carter tells tales – and he can certainly tell a tale – of decades of journalistic excess and achievement with disarming candour and sharp wit. He dishes on other luminaries - Anna Wintour, Princess Margaret and Christopher Hitchens - with relish, sparing no one, least of all himself. The book is rich with scandalous anecdotes, from sky-high expense accounts to Oscar party hijinks, but what lingers is Carter's irreverent joy in the trade. As co-founder of Spy, he helped to coin some long-lasting zingers aimed at then property developer Donald Trump – and the animosity lives on to this day. But beneath the glamour and high-society gossip lies a portrait of a bygone era when editors took wild risks and journalism was, in Carter's words, 'just plain fun". It is a compulsively readable love letter to an industry that is today – in the age of AI, algorithms and efficiency – a different beast altogether. Nasri Atallah, editor of The National's Luxury magazine Abbas Kiarostami is rightfully considered the cream of the rich Iranian film director crop and, while The Wind Will Carry Us may not be the best introduction to his oeuvre – that honour goes to Close Up – this contemplative masterpiece is essential viewing. The story follows an undercover documentarian (Behzad Dorani) who is assigned to cover a small village's funeral rites, but is continually frustrated because his potential subject, a sickly elderly woman, refuses to die. William Mullally, arts & culture editor Marco Brambilla's Demolition Man, starring Sylvester Stallone and Wesley Snipes, is not your average 1990s action sci-fi film. It barely broke even after its theatrical release, but its magic and the appreciation of audiences grew on home video. Set in 2032, a police officer is awoken from his frozen state to pursue a criminal from his own time. In this future, crime is all but eradicated, but Snipes, the criminal from the past, wreaks havoc on the peaceful society. The expertise and know-how of Stallone's character, John Spartan, is needed to pursue the criminal who uses methods all but unknown to the future. The film has been praised in recent times for predicting futuristic technology including video conferencing and social media. Demolition Man has been remastered in 4K by Arrow Video. Faisal Al Zaabi, gaming and social media writer
Ya Biladi
11-02-2025
- Politics
- Ya Biladi
MAK urges Marco Rubio to pressure Algeria over Kabylie
Feeling the winds blowing in its favor from the United States, the Movement for Self-Determination in Kabylia (MAK) is seeking to make the Trump administration aware of its demands. MAK advisor Elizabeth Myers, an American who heads the Marrakech-based firm Strategix Legal, sent a letter to Marco Rubio to this effect. She reminded the United States secretary of state of the letter he himself had sent in September 2022, when he was a senator, to his predecessor, Antony Blinken, regarding the $7 billion Algeria had earmarked for the purchase of Russian weapons. «Since then, the situation has only worsened. Algeria's defense budget is currently the largest in Africa, with $25 billion allocated for 2025—more than three times the $7 billion you were concerned about on September 14, 2022», she pointed out. Myers asserts that the MAK and the Kabyle government-in-exile (known as Anavad) are the principal opponents of Algeria's authoritarian regime and enjoy growing support among the 12 million Kabyles living at home and abroad. «The MAK continues to peacefully and relentlessly defend its oppressed people and march toward the establishment of a pluralist and democratic state, unlike Algeria's anti-democratic and demagogic military-religious oligarchy, which in no way represents the voice of the people». Elizabeth Myers : MAK draws inspiration from the U.S. Declaration of Independence To back up her indictment of the Algerian government, the Strategix Legal director referenced the latest report, published on January 30, 2025, by UN Special Rapporteur Mary Lawlor on the human rights situation in Algeria. «She expressed dismay that more than a year after her visit to Algeria, human rights defenders, including lawyers, are 'still arbitrarily arrested, judicially harassed, intimidated, and criminalized for their peaceful activities' under Article 87 bis of the Algerian Penal Code, 'a vaguely worded anti-terrorism provision that is often misused to repress freedom of expression, association, and peaceful assembly'», wrote the MAK adviser. On the other hand, she notes that her client «is committed to democratic values such as free elections, freedom of expression, and freedom of religion, and to respecting a constitution that is largely based on the U.S. Constitution. The Kabyle constitution cites as its authority the U.S. Declaration of Independence» of July 4, 1776. Myers concluded her letter by requesting, on behalf of MAK President Ferhat Mehenni, a meeting with Marco Rubio or one of his representatives to «discuss how Kabylia can work with the United States to stabilize Africa and promote democratic principles and prosperity». In her letter, Elizabeth Myers also pointed to Algeria's support for the Polisario and its relations with Cuba and Venezuela. In its latest report on terrorism, published in December 2024, the Biden administration rejected Algeria's designation of the MAK as a terrorist organization. As a reminder, on April 20, 2024, from New York, the MAK declared the creation of the Kabyle state.
