Shalabi Effect is a mostly instrumental band from

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The band was originally formed in 1996 as a duo composed of Anthony Seck and Sam Shalabi. Shalabi is an Egyptian-Canadian musician who is also the founder of Swamp Circuit, Detention, Nutsak, The Dwarfs of East Agouza, Moose Terrific and the orchestra Land of Kush. Seck is a filmmaker and member of the supergroup Valley of the Giants.

History

Shalabi and Seck independently released their first recording, a self-titled limited-edition cassette, in 1998. They then added Montreal artist and musician Alexandre Saint-Onge on double bass, and Will Eizlini on

tabla A ''tabla'' is a pair of hand drums from the Indian subcontinent. Since the 18th century, it has been the principal percussion instrument in Hindustani classical music, where it may be played solo, as an accompaniment with other instruments a ...

s and recorded the song "Aural Florida" at Red Rocket Studios in Montreal. The 36-minute song was meant to be half of a split CD with

Godspeed You! Black Emperor Godspeed You! Black Emperor (sometimes abbreviated to GY!BE or Godspeed) is a Canadian post-rock collective that originated in Montreal, Quebec in 1994. The group releases recordings through Constellation Records (Canada), Constellation, an in ...

, produced by Alien8. Instead, Alien8 became their label and they recorded "Aural Florida" for a second time at Sound of Sound of One Hand Studios in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

, along with several other songs. The result was the two-CD album ''

Shalabi Effect Shalabi Effect is a mostly instrumental band from Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The band was originally formed in 1996 as a duo composed of Anthony Seck and Sam Shalabi. Shalabi is an Egyptian-Canadian musician who is also the founder of Swamp Circu ...

'', which was released in 2000. The album continues in the tradition of live improvisation based on

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

ern modes but with a more experimental approach. It also includes strange semi-broken electronics and a variety of odd instruments, most of which were lying around in the studio where it was recorded. Returning from touring the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in the autumn of 2000, the group stepped into the studio for the third time. This time with a mind to create an EP release that captured the mood of the tour. In fact the EP, entitled, '' The Trial of St. Orange'', has a great deal more varied material, including a

drum 'n bass Drum and bass (commonly abbreviated as DnB, D&B, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterised by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-bass lines, samples, and synthesizers. The genre ...

mix. '' Pink Abyss'', dubbed by the band as their "pop" record, was released in January 2004. In 2005, they released their fourth album, ''Unfortunately''. On July 18, 2007, Anthony Seck was a guest, and music from the Shalabi Effect was featured on an unscheduled "technical test" episode of

Tom Green Live ''Tom Green's House Tonight'' (formerly known as ''Tom Green Live!'') is a talk show hosted by Tom Green. In addition to its primary Internet broadcast on ''TomGreen.com'', the show has been syndicated on television stations throughout North Am ...

. Anthony Seck was again featured on Tom Green Live in March 2008 in a segment called 'Shalabi with Cheese'.

Members

*Anthony Seck (electric guitar,

lapsteel The lap steel guitar, also known as a Hawaiian guitar or lap slide guitar, is a type of steel guitar without pedals that is typically played with the instrument in a horizontal position across the performer's lap. Unlike the usual manner of play ...

, moog, keyboards) (1996–present) *Sam Shalabi (

oud The oud ( ; , ) is a Middle Eastern short-neck lute-type, pear-shaped, fretless stringed instrument (a chordophone in the Hornbostel–Sachs classification of instruments), usually with 11 strings grouped in six courses, but some models have ...

, electronics, toys) (1996–present) *Alexandre Saint-Onge (double & electric bass, electronics, voices) (1998–present) *Will Eizlini (percussions, electronics, trumpet,

) (1998–present)

Discography

As Shalabi Effect

* ''Shalabi Effect'' (1998), Independent * ''

'' (2000), Alien8 * '' The Trial of St. Orange'' (2002), Alien8 * '' Pink Abyss'' (2004), Alien8 * ''Unfortunately'' (2005), Alien8 * ''Feign to Delight Gaiety of Gods'' (2012), Annihaya * ''Floating Garden'' (2015, EP), Independent * ''Friends of the Prophet 6'' (2021), Unrock

As Sam Shalabi

*''Luteness'' (2000) *''On Hashish'' (2001) *''Osama'' (2003) *''Eid'' (2008) *''Music For Arabs'' (2014) *''Isis and Osiris'' (2016) *''Gecko'' (2020) *''Shirk'' (2022)

As Anthony von Seck

*"My Best Friends in Exile" (2011, Experimental Farm)

Sam Shalabi on Other Albums

Molasses Molasses () is a viscous byproduct, principally obtained from the refining of sugarcane or sugar beet juice into sugar. Molasses varies in the amount of sugar, the method of extraction, and the age of the plant. Sugarcane molasses is usuall ...

– ''You'll Never Be Well No More'' (1999, Fancy) *

A Silver Mt. Zion A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient ...

– '' He Has Left Us Alone but Shafts of Light Sometimes Grace the Corner of Our Rooms…'' (2000,

Constellation A constellation is an area on the celestial sphere in which a group of visible stars forms Asterism (astronomy), a perceived pattern or outline, typically representing an animal, mythological subject, or inanimate object. The first constellati ...

) *

– ''Trilogie: Toil & Peaceful Life'' (2000, Fancy) *Kristian, Shalabi, St-Onge – ''Kristian, Shalabi, St-Onge'' (2001, Alien8) *Detention – ''Warp & Woof'' (2001, Arrival) *

Fly Pan Am Fly Pan Am, or Le Fly Pan Am, are a Canadian experimental rock band formed in Montreal in 1996. They release their albums through the Montreal-based Constellation Records, producing and collaborating on works with Godspeed You! Black Emperor ...

– ''

Ceux qui inventent n'ont jamais vécu (?) ''Ceux qui inventent n'ont jamais vécu (?)'' ''(Those who invent have never lived (?))'' is the second album by Fly Pan Am. It was released by Constellation Records in April 2002. The album, as stated by Constellation Records, has a recurrent ...

'' (2002,

) *Fortner Anderson – ''Sometimes I Think'' (2002, Wired On Words) *Klaxon Gueule – ''Grain'' (2002,

Ambiances Magnétiques Ambiances Magnétiques is a Canadian record company and label started by Jean Derome, René Lussier, and others, and the artists' collective that preceded it. History In 1982, "guitarist René Lussier and saxophonist/flutist Jean Derome presen ...

) * Elizabeth Anka Vajagic – ''Stand With The Stillness Of This Day'' (2004,

) *

– ''Trouble At Jinx Hotel'' (2004, Alien8) *Ensemble SuperMusique – ''Canevas «+»'' (2004,

) * Elizabeth Anka Vajagic – ''Nostalgia / Pain'' (2005,

) *Poseidon Council – ''An Sphinx Awoken'' (2005, No Type) *Nutsak – ''You Are Going To Prison / Last Train To Nutsak, NJ'' (2008, Signed By Force) *Land of Kush – ''Land of Kush's Egyptian Light Orchestra – Monogamy'' (2010, Constellation) *Land of Kush – ''Against the Day'' (2009, Constellation) *Matana Roberts, Sam Shalabi, Nicolas Caloia - ''

Feldspar Feldspar ( ; sometimes spelled felspar) is a group of rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, also containing other cations such as sodium, calcium, potassium, or barium. The most common members of the feldspar group are the ''plagiocl ...

'' (2014, Tour De Bras)

References

{{Authority control Canadian post-rock groups Musical collectives Alien8 Recordings artists Musical groups established in 1996 Musical groups from Montreal 1996 establishments in Quebec