Peace in the Middle East is a serious subject. It’s not a topic that you can just gloss over with someone. Once you start a discussion about it, you have to see it through. In that sense the discussion for some, is analogous to the conflict itself. A band from Israel called Orphaned Land has sought to enter the discussion whole-heartedly, and has seen some startling results that even some governments cannot claim to have achieved.
Musically Orphaned Land combines prog rock, extreme metal, plus Middle-Eastern and Oriental music to create a melodic multi-level listening experience. Thematically, the band speaks about the three major monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In the music of Orphaned Land these cultures are in fact one and the same. It’s this message of unity and peace, along with their highly technical and beautiful music, that’s garnered them fans all over the Middle East and indeed, the world.
The band had an eight year gap between their second and third albums, reportedly due to difficult living conditions at the time. In this video, vocalist Kobi Farhi speaks about how Arab fans helped inspire the return of Orphaned Land, as well as a bit of an insight into their meticulous writing process.
The album that emerged from this time period is called Mabool: The Story of the Three Sons of Seven. The title is a reference to the three monotheistic cultures and the time of the great flood. The album was a smash among both critics and metal fans alike.
“Ocean Land” - 2004
Following the release of the album Orphaned Land received a lot of media attention, including coverage in the book Heavy Metal Islam and the Canadian documentary film Global Metal. This attention is at least partially due to the band’s concerts apparently being one of the few places where you can find Arabs and Jews co-mingling.
The buzz has once again been building for their brand new album entitled The Never Ending Way of the ORwarriOR, which is out in North America today. Some of the buzz initially came from the band’s latest photo session, which once again depicts the three monotheistic religions co-existing together.
Produced by Steven Wilson of UK prog-superstars Porcupine Tree, ORwarriOR is Orphaned Land’s most focused and powerful release thus far. It’s a beautiful blend of traditional subtlety and modern-day intensity. Not only has the band inspired peace among its fans, but they also serve as an inspiration to the ever-growing Israeli metal scene, having become the most well-known metal band from the region. In fact with their message of peace and co-existence striking a chord with so many young people, they may be the most well-known band in the region, period.
Click here to check out the video for the lead-off track from The Never Ending Way of the ORwarriOR called “Sapari,” an adaptation of a well-known Yemenite folk song.
You can also click here to see part two of the interview with Kobi, where he speaks about the inspiration for the music, photos, and artwork of the new album. As well check out this recent article about the band by Jewish metal scholar Keith Kahn-Harris.
Orphaned Land has only five shows on their upcoming North American tour, two of which, fortunately stop in Canada.
March 10 – Foufounes Electriques – Montreal
March 13 – Annex Wreckroom – Toronto
That’s all for now. If you like heavy music or just want a laugh check out the podcast I produce:
The Governor’s Ball: The “Mighty” Metal and Comedy Show
Andrew, the EM intern