
qalandari dub gypsies, the empty quarter, have been pouring out their collective heart and soul in the studio over the last few months, in the lead up to this year’s Muslim Music Festival. Joined by Meg Smith on violin, the group continue to explore the realms of the heart through the words of the mystic poets, rumi, hafez and ghalib and their own original lyrics. the group will be launching their debut ep at the final concert of the 2008 Muslim Music Festival, on September 8. joining them on stage will be the colour of unity qawwali ensemble, acoustic pop duo, patterns for paper, and victorian beatbox champion, shazet. full details of the festival, which spans three nights at the Northcote Town Hall, Melbourne, are available from the Muslim Music Festival website. here’s a sample of what to expect from the empty quarter on the night: [audioplaylist:TheEmptyQuarter]