Metal Anarchy

Time for the next edition of Metal Anarchy’s “new music showcase,” the feature where I introduce you to artists that readers of this site may find interesting. This time I have a Q&A with Lazywall.

METAL ANARCHY: Tell me a little about your band:

LAZYWALL: We are Lazywall. An Oriental Rock/Metal Hybrid band from Morocco. The band was formed in 2003 in Reading, UK and in 2008 we moved back to Morocco. Our first EP was produced by Steve Albini (Nirvana, The Pixies) and since then we have released 5 albums. In 2022, we made the switch to sing in Darija, the Arabic dialect of Morocco. Our sound is a mix of occident rock and metal guitar riffs with oriental instruments like the Oud (Arabic luth) or Guembri (African bass).

METAL ANARCHY: Who are your main influences?

LAZYWALL: We grew up listening to American or British Rock and Metal. When we formed the band, our main influences were heavy guitar riffs bands like Rage Against The Machine, System Of A Down and Audioslave. When we decided to move back to Morocco, we studied the 1994 “No Quarter” live gig of Jimmy Page and Robert Plant. “Kashmir” version with the oriental orchestra inspired us to add our Moroccan identity to the band’s sound. Led Zeppelin were mostly using Arabic percussion in the show, like the Bendir, Tar or Darbukas. We wanted to take it a bit further and try with string instruments. We found out the Oud tuning was fitting so well with our Drop D tunings.

METAL ANARCHY: What is your latest release and why should readers of this site check it out?

LAZYWALL: This summer, we released our song “Dem 3la Dem”. This song defines what means Oriental Rock in Arabic. It moves from slow parts played with oriental instruments towards heavy powerful choruses with guitars and drums. The bridge of the song is a battle of guitar VS Oud, bass VS Guembri and Darbuka VS drums. The same riff is played over and over swapping from Occident to Orient until the last phrase of the bridge where they all merge into one world. We think people should check it out if they want to hear something new that they have never heard before, like a distorted Oud through a Mesa Boogie amp.

METAL ANARCHY: What can people expect when they go to your live shows?

LAZYWALL: We know our musical genre is not very popular. Singing rock/metal with an oriental touch and in Arabic is rare. So, we thought if we were going to be different, might as well be the most different we could be. We crafted unique custom-made instruments that we use in our shows. The Guitaroud is a double neck guitar with one neck guitar, one neck Oud. The Bassentir is a bass with 5 strings, 2 bass strings and 3 guembri strings. Our drummer has replaced one of his toms with a Darbuka and added a Tbal (African Drum) as a 2nd floor Tom.

METAL ANARCHY: Where do you see your band heading in 5 years?

LAZYWALL: The last time we made a long-term strategy, a Pandemic came and ruined all our plans. So now, we try to take it step by step. With years of experience, we have learned that we have to be patient. We have to write our story one page at a time. So far, our strategic ideas of 2023 have been achieved. And we have already started working in 2024. The plan is to release new songs for the next 12 months and try to get some European dates for next summer. We just hope Arabic Rock will become more popular than it is right now.