About Me
This style gives me a lot of freedom to do what I want with music. By that, I mean mixing East and West, exclaims Los Angeles musician Michael Cox. He began his career in the mid 70s as a multi-instrumentalist and composer. Having harbored a love for the music of other cultures since a boy, he learned to play Arabic music in a series of ensembles in East Coast night clubs. The foundation for what I do is provided by using Arabic drum patterns combined with hip hop or house drums, along with a strong bass line. I can build a composition where Im free to do nearly anything I want, because the basic foundation is so strong. I can use a Western song form, or a pattern based on Arabic scales, or even a one or two chord vamp as a basis for improvisation. Musically, the skys the limit, really, because its so grounded rhythmically.
Classically trained as well as schooled in the sound of the streets, Coxs music can be heard in feature films and on television. In addition to his work as a composer, Michael is frequently called upon to spin, having served as the resident DJ at Bal Arabiana at Les Deux Cafes in Hollywood. It was during this time that his remix skills came to the attention of Caravan Records.
In 2003, he launched his own label, Down Dog Records, and released In The Moment, under the name Petrol Bomb Samosa. This is more of an Indian/Western ambient sort of fusion. The next year, under the moniker Cairo Tip Hop Underground, he followed up with Raks Zahra, an eclectic collection of original music and two remixes of the Rimsky-Korsakov classic Scheherazade.
Petrol Bomb Samosa has a brand new track, Baghdad Groove on Tantra Lounge Vol. 4, from Varese Sarabande, set to drop on May 24. This is a remix of the classic Arabic song, El Samer. Also on this sultry compilation are tracks from Natacha Atlas, Thievery Corporation, and Bombay Dub Orchestra.
Michael is also a member of Kan Zaman, a Pasadena-based ensemble that plays classical and folkloric Arabic music. Check them out at www.myspace.com/kanzamanmusic
