Selection of Field Recordings, Sounds, Music and Propaganda from the Islamic State's "Clanging of the Swords", one of IS’s most well-known anashīd. This anashīd merit our attention and deconstruction.
The last verse of the chorus goes like this: "And concealment of the voice results in the beauty of the echo". This sound work conceals precisely that voice in the nashīd to offer the beauty of that echo.
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"Hymnal Propaganda: A Closer Look at ‘Clanging of the Swords’" by Alexander Schinis and published by jihadology.
jihadology.net/2017/10/16/guest-post-hymnal-propaganda-a-closer-look-at-clanging-of-the-swords/
It will not take long for the listener to recognize how repetitive “Clanging of the Swords” is. Repetition is an integral part of many of IS’s anashīd. However, this should not be read as a lack of creativity on the part of their creators. Instead, the nashīd presents itself as a medium that enjoys a strong relationship with memory. Charles Hirschkind, in a study of sermons and the practice of “ethical listening” in Egypt, found that sermons could be easily memorizable because of their use of repetition (Columbia University Press, 2006). He points to Marcel Jousse’s theory of gesture and memory, which states that gestures, such as aural patterns, are predisposed to easy memorization. The nashīd’s use of repetition is likely a strategy used by IS to facilitate their memorization by its intended audience.
Repetition in “Clanging of the Swords” appears on a few levels. The first is its repetition of the chorus, made up of four lines. (…) Each line of the hymn is made up of two hemistichs, and in the original Arabic of the hymn, the lastvocalization of each line’s second hemistich rhymes with an “a” sound. This is achieved with a few different schemes. One includes rhyming different letters with similar sounds. This is seen in the chorus, where the use of the taa’ marbuta (ة) in the words life (الحیاة) and tyranny (الطغاة) are made to rhyme with the alif maqsura (ى) of the word echo (الصدى).
Some anashīd come paired with video productions and “Clanging of the Swords” is one such nashīd. The associated video (archive.org/details/zruu93), released in the summer of 2014, runs for over an hour and features this nashīd as background audio several times.
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Video Game Symbology
The footage is an example of the group’s efforts to incorporate new media forms like video games into its propaganda productions. Marcus Schulzke demonstrated how other Islamist groups used video games as a means to frame the narrative of the conflicts in which they were engaged. He notes that on a practical level, video game imagery “serves in [the war of ideas] both to intimidate opponents and to mobilize supporters” (Cambridge Review of International Affairs, 2014).
The conceptual framework of a videogame also stands as a familiar medium for a younger audience. It invites this audience to imagine themselves as a participant in the conflict, using the parallel between the active role of playing as a video game’s protagonist. The value of ISIS using this video game effect is likely an effort to match the outcomes that Schulzke highlights, possibly for the benefit of recruiting younger viewers.
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No effects. No overdubs. Just editing. No mastering.
Cover picture by Islamic State.
Font: Pricedown from Call of Duty video game.