ZULI Presents: Habibi Loops Vol 1 Zuli

ZULI, aka Ahmed El Ghazoly, is one of the central figures in Cairo’s lively electronic music scene, and since his 2018 debut Terminal he’s made music that moves between ambient, footwork, grime, D&B, and IDM over several solo EPs and collaborative efforts. Habibi Loops Vol. 1 is a collection of four hip-hop beats built around chopped up, extended and repetitive samples of old Egyptian jazz and funk. But where his previous work of this kind, especially with rapper Abyusif, is denser and darker, the music here mostly maintains the soul and melody tone of the original tracks, balancing their sumptuous instrumentation with Zuli’s rhythmic sensibilities. Closing number “Kassir w Khazzen ft. Haykal [كسر و خزن]” is where the smoky samples transform into something harder, with rapper Haykal spitting his barbed bars over stuttering beats.