Masma Dream World (us)

Ancestral, dark, primal, visceral, powerful. These words could all describe Masma Dream World’s ethereal soundscapes, but they would fail to fully capture the gripping nature that sits at the core of it. Supported only by her layers of drones, Masma Dream World (aka Devi Mambouka) will offer a unique sonic experience verging on a religious ceremony.

Born in Gabon but raised in The Bronx (NYC), supernatural guide/compositional genius Devi Mambouka embodies Masma Dream World, an enigmatic shaman and spiritual mother. Rooted in ritual rhythms, her drone-mass will welcome all those who dare joining her on Friday afternoon. All initiates are to immerse themselves in these ritualistic soundscapes, dominated by Masma Dream World’s chanting and surrounded by the picturesque background of Theaterzaal art nouveau interior. Amongst these gilded walls our spiritual mother will take us along on a journey where she will unravel the deepest and darkest corners of her heart, in a performance that will invoke magic as a powerful form of healing and worship.

Pairing repetition with dissonance, Masma Dream World builds massive walls of sound that possess a ritualist quality to it. These serve as the background to her chants, the foundation onto which her ceremony is built, and sustain the emotional charge this is imbued with. Musically, Masma Dream World doesn't stray from the path drawn by the genre’s precursors, however, the emotional and personal quality of her music truly sets it apart as uniquely enchanting. Composed as a way to process personal trauma, or as the artist proclaims “bearing witness to a personal journey to hell and back”, these soundscapes are as mysterious as they are accessible, precisely because they are pervaded with the insignia of universality that are pain and suffering. As the title suggests, Masma Dream World’s latest ritual “Please Come To Me” is both a heart-wrenching plea and a soul-baring offering. It carries Devi Mambouka’s pain and bares her soul for all to see, and as such brims with the outmost beauty.

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