Sufi Women is the sixth collection of experimental electronic pieces by British, Oxford-based master pianist Pat Thomas for the Scottish label scatterArchive with its pay what you can afford policy. The prolific Thomas became a Sufi in 1990 after being drawn to its traditions of scholarship and social justice is known as the leader of the [Ahmed] أحمد quartet and [Shifa] شفاء. trio.
The album is dedicated to the «remarkable contribution of Sufi Women to the spiritual science of Tassawuff, known as Sufism in the West. Throughout the Islamic world, Women are known for the profound spirituality they contain. There has never been a time when seekers of truth have not gone to these remarkable individuals for their advice and prayers».
Thomas recorded the thirteen concise pieces between 10 October 2024 and 04 June 2025 at his own studio, Urban Sufi Studio, in Rosehill, Oxford, and mixed all the pieces. These pieces alternate between dissonant, friction and tension-filled chamber arrangements of samples of acoustic string instruments and mysterious electronic collisions of sounds and intense drones. But, patiently, Thomas juggles with this thoughtful dance of sounds and often shrinks the distance between the sonic poles in an inspired and thoughtful manner that stresses the shared sonic ecosystem of the acoustic samples with the electronic sounds, as both poles stimulate and feed each other and are brilliantly woven into a rich, thought-provoking tapestry.
Eyal Hareuveni
Pat Thomas (electronics)
