With two collaborative EPs under their belt, musician Maii Waleed (Egypt) and producer, Zeid Hamdan (Lebanon) fall into a groove on their recent release, “Ehdefni”.

The 4 track EP is fresh, although not entirely dissimilar to their previous work, including the EP, “Moga“, released in 2010, and their follow up, “Ezaal“, which dropped in 2015.

In “Ehdefni”, the EP suggests that while Maii and Zeid have come to be known for their indie-electro-pop textures, and lyrics that oscillate seamlessly from playful to melancholic, the title track indicates their progress together.

With a wonky sounding synth-line, a moody guitar, galactic embellishments, and Maii’s introspective lyrics, combine to give the track a feel of something more futuristic than their previous work.

But the strongest track, in my opinion, is “Mourib”, both instrumentally and lyrically. As the track opens, we enter into a pitch-bending melody that is reminiscent of the Arab context in which it was created, alongside a dubbed out beat, and Maii’s skilled, and at times, sardonic storytelling.

The EP, combined with the frequency of their production and performances together, suggests that Maii and Zeid are two artists that are very much finding their musical sweet spot together – one that is made up of dreamy, ethereal, songwriting, good vibes, and just enough wit.

Stream “Ehdefni” EP on Soundcloud and Spotify.

*

Maii and Zeid on Facebook, Spotify, Soundcloud.