Search - Haïfa :: Houwa El Zaman

Not a work of art but...

Faris A. Habayeb | W Lafayette, IN USA | 05/27/2004

(3 out of 5 stars)

"If it were for looks she would have scored 5 stars! The ex model, beauty pageant and now turning actress/singer almost impresses the Arab world with this offering. The album is not amazing, nor is it a work of art but a pleasant piece of work. Haifa does not have a powerful voice and on several occasions in this CD she's not really singing and her voice even sounds uncordinated. Nonetheless, professional studio mixing and production cleans up Haifa's blemishes. If you're looking for Arabic trance/dance/techno or wondered if it ever existed then here it is! Nonetheless, even though the album maintains a western influence it still maintains an oriental zest. The best tracks are: Agoul Ahwak, Ma Sar, Kalouli Annou, Huwa el Zaman and Salim Halek. And just for the hell of it please note that Badi ou ma Badi's introduction is taken from ex-All Saint, Melanie Blatt's 24/7."