1991 from Mishriff / مشرف by KUWAISIANA

This song is a bit of an ode to the Gulf War. The song is full of reflection on various events and scenes +Aziz experienced across Kuwait (e.g. slamming doors due to low flying war planes, blackened skies from oil feel set on fire, casual conversations with Iraqi soldiers, etc.)

Luckily, his parents were in the UAE. As academics and writers, Saddam Hussein’s regime would’ve been very interested in imprisoning them.

As a result, +Aziz and his siblings were passed around to different family members living in Salmiya, Mishref, Shuwaikh, Al-Thahar and Sabah Al-Salem.

The song mixes synth and guitar-driven layers as it works to convey the slowness of living through the war.

Tracklist

4.	1991	4:28

Lyrics

Born in the sun / in 1991
Soldiers coming through / to a house near you |
Old men gone numb | heroes to no one |
War reappear / school is out this year.

Helicopters in the air, humming in disdain
Newspaper covered windows / remind me to be brave |
They drew an X on the house, citizenship erase / soon to be erased
Some enemies are neighbors - it’s time for us to meet them

Soldiers coming through / to put a bullet in you
Cousins on their way / Back to save the day

I woke up on the run / at the break of dawn
Black rain pouring down / on her wedding gown
Big boots coming through to put a bullet in you
Old men gone so numb | Heroes to no one |

Black hawks in the air / slamming doors sound insane
Oil fields on fire leave planetary stains
Soldiers stroll on campus, they look a lot like me.
Some enemies are neighbors - but it’s time to come together

Black smoke rising high, hospitals ablaze
Head bouncing on the pillow, chemical warfare
They drew an X on the house, soon I’ll be erased
Some enemies are neighbors - but it’s time to come together.

Credits

from Mishriff / مشرف, released October 18, 2024
+Aziz on guitars, vocals, hand percussion
Yousef Shami on drums
Brian Riedel on bass
Mohammad Alowaisi on synth

Recorded in Orbit Audio (Seattle, WA)
Mixing & Mastering Engineer: Robbie Houston

License