(Constellation)

Best known as the home of apocalyptic post-rockers Godspeed! You Black Emperor, Montreal’s Constellation label also presents an intriguing strand of contemporary Arabic-influenced music, including Sam Shalabi’s Land of Kush project and now this. Jerusalem in My Heart is a collaboration between Lebanon-born Radwan Ghazi Moumneh, French musician/producer Jérémie Regnier and Chilean artist/filmmaker Malena Szlam Salazar. Following several performances, the trio present their debut studio album, a gauzy enigma of echo-drenched Arabic vocals, twanging buzuk, and grainy, over-saturated electronics. The sequenced modular synth that pulses through ‘Yudaghdegh al-ra3ey wala al-ghanam’ recalls the neo-kosmische of Emeralds or Jonas Reinhardt, but the keening Arabic vocals take things into more hermetic territory. Other tracks deploy erratic Terry Riley-like organ, while acoustic numbers showcase Moumneh’s powerful voice and mesmeric buzuk runs.