STORY BY GEORGINA BENISON -
PHOTOS BY KHALID AL BUSAIDI -
It all started with an emotion. Inspired by nature around him, this budding artist took up the task of turning his feelings into a melody, along with artists from around the globe he created an album that was an expression of the inspiration that his environment and nature around brewed in him. “Still Motion” is Abdullah’s fourth and newest album that he released at the end of last 2018.
Abdullah Al Bajjali or Shadowotd is a 27-year-old, currently working at the Royal Opera House Muscat. His love for music started very early on, growing up listening to metal bands and classic rock, Abdullah soon took to the guitar at the age of 17, teaching himself with the help of online tutorials and videos, before he knew it, he has mastered the guitar.
Completely self-taught, After the guitar, Abdullah took to learning the workings of other instruments that can be heard on the new album — orchestral pieces that he composed himself.
“Once I had learned the guitar, I started to study other instruments just to understand their workings and the sound they made. This made it possible for me to include this into compositions that have an orchestral feel, inspired by my love for classical music,” he added.
An inquisitive mind with an eagerness to learn, Abdullah started to branch out his interests sharing “I was mostly into mental bands initially, soon I was listening to jazz, blues, and even classical music. I had the realisation that the more time I spent listening to a diverse variety of music, that the better I understood different styles and sounds. Listening to peoples styles and techniques, it changes the way you think about music as a whole.”
To Abdullah, music is a common language that he can share with the world. It goes beyond language barriers and this was another thought that went into his newest album, along with the inspiration he gained from nature leading to the creation of “Still Motion”.
Abdullah isn’t one to follow the norm, not one to fit into a music category. “Every album of mine, “Still Motion” being the fourth is a representation of something I felt. I’m constantly inspired by what I see around me along with an eagerness to give my listeners something that is new, and nothing like my previous works. My last album was inspired by space but the overall sound of the album was completely different from my new album.”
My biggest challenge when making this album was making the other featuring artists were given fair space to display their skills.
“The people I worked with had their own unique sound and style and with them adding to my compositions and album, it was important for me that their work was not only well incorporated with mine, but also that in the process their identity and uniqueness remained intact. Although this was difficult, it helped us produce an album that was both fresh and like something that had never been done before,” said Abdullah.
He added, “For me, music is like a common language, no matter where you are, where you’re from and what language you speak, it isn’t difficult to connect with other people through music. Also featured on this album are people from across the world — one of the songs on the album was composed along with a Norwegian guitarist from all the way across in Europe and this happened solely because we shared and connected over music.”
When you listen to the album, you get a true sense of what the artist is trying to explain along with the experience they are trying to share and convey with the listeners. Although the central idea of the album is based on nature, the music gives its listeners a glimpse into the emotions that the artist himself had.
To follow Abdullah, check him out on his Instagram @shadowotd or check out his music on smarturl.it/Stillmotion
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