Rumi's Cave - MOCAfest After Party

Although I'm generally quite proud of my cynicism, there are rare times when it tends to bite me in the bum. Take this week for instance, when I totally snubbed MOCAfest even though it was a stone's throw away from work. I'm told that it was rather good, but my avoidance of most events with "Muslim", "Islam" or "Global Peace and Unity" in the name (or variants thereof) took precedence and I dismissed it quite easily.

But that's all as an aside really, as the real reason I attended the event today was because it was hosted by Rumi's Cave. I won't dwell on what that actually means (you know, to maintain some level of elitist snobbery) only to say I just checked my blog and it appears that 2009 was the last Rebel Muzic event I attended. Man, that was a long time ago.

Of course it's bordering on a cliché if I was to tell everyone how awesome the event was, but I will anyway. I'm ashamed to say I don't fully remember the full lineup, but according to the flyer we had amongst the artists Jamal Raslan, Mark Gonzales, Tasleem Jamila, Native Sun and Asif Sinan - all enjoyed by a pretty intimate crowd of around 100 people.

Don't worry: I hadn't heard of any of them either (with the exception of Native Sun I guess), but each were amazing and wonderful to see and hear. The live music was ace (as it always is), but for me I would probably say that tonight was one of the most effective demonstrations of Spoken Word that I've ever had the pleasure of listening to. We're talking multi-layered, critical, non-judgemental yet beautifully accessible messages here, covering all sorts of topics from religion, prejudice, the environment and just life and how to live it as a nice person. And since I wasn't totally annoyed by the whole thing it can't have been too hippy either.

Honestly, I listened to stuff that had more value and sheer smarts than I hear during my day job attempting to play the professional. And as arrogant and awful as it sounds I immediately felt sorry for all those who thought that Eid in the Wharf (also this week) was a decent injection of culture into their lives.

So yes, a brilliant night out and one that makes me long for the days of Rebel Muzik.