May
14
Taqwacore
Filed Under Uncategorized |
Taqwacore is a genre of punk music dealing with Islam and its culture, originally conceived in Michael Muhammad Knight’s novel, The Taqwacores. The name is a portmanteau of hardcore and the Arabic word Taqwa, which is usually translated as “piety” or the quality of being “God-fearing”, and thus roughly denotes fear and love of the divine.
The first bands to use the term taqwacore are The Kominas, 8-bit and Vote Hezbollah.
There is not a definitive “taqwacore sound,” as artists incorporate various styles, ranging from punk to hip-hop, and musical traditions from the Muslim world; the Kominas describe their sound as “Bollywood punk” while Al-Thawra uses the term “raicore,” based on Arabic rai music.
External links
- Islamic Street Preachers: From Boston to Lahore & Beyond
- Slam Dancing for Allah
- Photo Essay on Taqwacore
- Taqwacore Discussion Forum