The Arabian Gulf island of Bahrain, though tiny, is home to a rich and diverse culture, and currently has one of the more vibrant music scenes in the Middle East. Zone+ & Usif are an electronic music duo made up of DJs/producers Zeyad Mohsen and Yousif Sanad, Bahraini natives who have played music together since childhood, exposed to genres from electronic to instrumental. According to them, the locals are lovely, the food is amazing, and they grew up with a vast accessibility to entertainment. “We enjoyed the simple & fun things in life, we are lucky to have good friends & people around us that make everyday a special one.”


Zeyad and Yousif got started with music when they were young, exploring a number of musical genres both separately and together, such as with artists YokoO and Mathew Dekay. However, it was playing the Soundscapes events in Bahrain that was a breakthrough for them, prompting their decision to begin making music as a duo. Since then they have developed substantially with the support of venues like Deep Like (Dubai), Pureink (Dubai), El Chiringuito (Dubai) and more, and have released on labels Underyourskin (Germany), Akumandra (Mexico) and Talavera (Mexico). They are productive, and within the past year have released three EPs, titled Talavera Records, Balkan, and most recently Places.

Though they have a long history of playing and listening to music with each other, Zone+ & Usif now tend towards slightly different sound palettes and genre preferences. This, however, does not at all hinder their collaboration, instead helping them “in the creative process by recalling the sounds we both favor and creating something that both of us can relate to,” fostering a cohesive blend and allowing them to adopt different sonic roles depending on their moods, in which “Usif may take the subtle sound in a track while Zone+ takes the heavy part in terms of instruments bass lines kicks etc., and it can also be the other way around.” The result is airy, meditative but driving electronic music with tasteful and subtle use of samples from around the world.

Their knack for collaboration does not stop at producing their music, but is equally evident in their live sets. They tour extensively, this year planning to be in the USA, Europe and Asia. Performance is serious business to the duo, who carefully select their shows and do research on the location. As well, they do a vibe check with each other before they get behind the decks; “we like to sit down and to listen to music together to understand the stage drive each of us are in at the moment because we grow and our sound changes from time to time, so it’s important for us to understand our ears to have a harmony depending on the slot, whether it is a warm up or main set.” 

Though the duo is currently based in Dubai, they keep a finger on the pulse of the Bahraini scene, and while they are happy that the scene has grown, echo an opinion we have heard from artists across the region: promoters need to be doing more to support local artists. This is why the duo throws parties, using their leverage as internationally known artists “to give the locals support and importance...so it motivates them to do what they do best.”


We see no lack of motivation on the part of Zone+ & Usif, and if they continue to be as productive and dedicated to their art as they have proven to be, we have a lot to look forward to from the Bahraini duo. 


Follow Zone+ & Usif on their SoundCloud and Facebook.