If you haven’t heard the name Hasan Hijjawi or Kitchen Crowd before, then you’re probably not well-informed with the who’s who of the Jordanian dance music community. For the past 15 years Hasan has been a catalyst in the growth of electronic music and DJ culture in his hometown of Amman, and all around the country in fact.
After catching the ‘Chicago bug’ in the early 2000’s during his time in the US, Hijjawi returned to Amman to hold down several residencies at venerated venues like Shaman and Prana. At those residencies Kitchen Crowd aimed to recreate nights similar to the ones he experienced and cherished deeply at Chicago’s hallowed Crobar. Now 15 years, thousands of gigs, two residencies and one successful pop up club concept (Disko’tek’) later, Hasan is currently in the process of moving to Egypt, where he aims to spend most of his year and embark on new projects. We ran into him at a local event and he was more than glad to send us a mix recorded out of his new home and HQ in Gouna.
Kitchen Crowd’s picturesque set is captivating in both vibe and flow. Starting out very subtly, it intensifies with every track, interjected by dainty and ethereal breaks. The set features new releases from Kotelett & Zadak, Dekmantel’s Carrot Green and Joseph Ashworth, whose track Dominika can be considered as the set’s standout track. It’s clear that Hasan soaked up a number of Gouna sunsets before going in to record this one.
Follow Kitchen Crowd on Facebook for more updates and head to his Soundcloud for more music.
