Tashkezar @ The Magic Garden

Tashkezar blend psych guitars with funk-driven basslines, pounding drums, Balkan brass, anthemic synth and euphoric Arabic vocals into something they call Baladi Funk.

Hailing from different backgrounds but united in their obsession with the groove, they meld a cosmic fusion of vintage Egyptian Pop, Anatolian Rock, Balkan, Funk, Electro-Pop, Afrobeat... whatever makes them move. Like the ancient ritual of ‘Zar’, Tashkezar's wild, high-energy sets whip dancefloors into a euphoric frenzy, fast gaining them a cult following.

Once a mainstay of the Cairo underground music scene, frontwoman Mariam uses wordplay and wry humour to process the personal and political upheavals that led to her leaving Egypt, enjoining us to turn our disillusionment into hope.