Hassan Abou Alam Introduces New Alias Hablam with Ambient EP ‘Saya7an’

An inside-out techno meshed together with barely constrained maelstroms of UK bass permutations, disjointed breaks, and storming drum workouts held atop vertiginous ambience - those are some of the words that usually come to mind when thinking of Hassan Abou Alam’s music. It’s bassy, noisy, clubby, and quite unpredictable, bridging experimental textures with dancefloor destruction.

As unpredictable as his sound, so is his approach to production, the Cairo-born DJ, producer and sound designer is now reemerging with a new alias, Hablam, a project through which he explores a wholly different musical style on the opposite side of the left-far spectrum he’s been so long dominating. As he puts it, “It’s a project to help you unwind.”

He presents that Hablam side of him with an EP called ‘Saya7an’, and contrary to what its name may suggest, it is something that is further askew from blistering noise - rather, it’s a more melody-driven and ambient with controlled frequencies that feel evermore cinematic.

For this three-track EP, Abou Alam - or should we say Hablam - takes a minimalistic approach to production, utilising FM synthesis to generate complex unique timbres with subtle modulation and dreamy pads. It’s soft minimal mood music designed with the intent of defusing the anxious atmosphere of everyday life.

‘Sad Shower Music’ and the titular track ‘Saya7an’ focus on sustained mellow synth notes, subtly looping them at different rates. The result is contemplative and pensive music that has echoes of Brain Eno’s ambient works and composition, a sound that is easily blendable into the background rather than demanding one’s focus.

Meanwhile, the EP’s opener ‘Tato’ - which fits right up the alley of what one would call ‘chill beats to study to playlist’ - features undertones of Abou Alam’s signature drumlines. To those who are aware of them, they sound quite wet, drenched in eerie ambience and reverb. It is as subtle as it is intriguing.