Seattle-based singer-songwriter Ben Fisher follows-up 2016’s Charleston with Does the Land Remember Me? – an album strives to humanize and make some sense of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Jewish-American multi-instrumentalist majored in Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Washington and moved to Israel after graduation. There he wrote for The Jerusalem Post and eventually earned dual citizenship before returning to the US in 2017. The songs that comprise the LP present similar struggles that both the Israelis and Palestinians experience through a series of narrative reflective ballads. Album highlights include: the country-tinged “Yallah to Abdullah”; “Brave New World” – a rumination on Fisher’s dual identity as both an Israeli and a American; “1948” which offers multiple stories from the Arab-Israeli war of that year; a cover of Anaïs Mitchell’s “Why We Build the Wall” – a retelling of the Greek myth of Eurydice with modern twist that touches on Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip. Ben Fisher’s Does the Land Remember Me? takes on a complex issue with openness, honesty, and hope in this engaging collection of songs. – Written by JFelton
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