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Album Review: Hanni El Khatib - Savage Times

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"A well-formed, unified body of work."

More Hanni El Khatib Hanni El Khatib Profile

Hanni El Khatib's Savage Times, made up of all the songs from the five EPs he released last year together with four brand new tracks, is a widely diverse album, his signature electric guitar its unifying element.

The album carries many important messages — Freak Freely urges you to be yourself and Gun Clap Hero comments on America's police shootings — but it's still Born Brown, an ode to American immigrants, that's the most powerful. On this track, El Khatib — born in San Francisco to immigrant parents — throatily shouts his pride over an intense four-on-the-floor kick and heavy synth line.

The compilation that is Savage Times works as a well-formed, unified body of work.