An amazing album on Batov Records where the Sandman Project gets on their Arabian surf board and rides the wave of Mulatu Astatke's Ethio-Jazz, mixes up West African psychedelic rock and 180's into a 360 of funk.
Nearly 4 years on from 'Hamsa Remixes EP' (see review HERE) and following the international praise for their 2024 debut album 'Where Did You Go?', the Sandman Project return with , the first album entirely composed, arranged and produced by guitarist, composer and bandleader Tal Sandman.
Deeply rooted in psychedelic groove, Middle Eastern musicality, funk, jazz and desert rock, it is a record driven above all by a wider spiritual belief in music as a force for connection.
If 'Where Did You Go?' introduced Sandman Project as a borderless, brass-heavy outfit with a cinematic sound, 'Hearts Forever' takes that vision somewhere more intimate and self-assured. Written following Tal's move from Jaffa to Leipzig, the album reflects a period of personal and creative transformation.
Arriving in Germany without knowing whether she would find the right collaborators, she gradually assembled a new band through recommendations from fellow musicians, discovering a group capable of bringing her musical vision to life.
For Tal, the music is not about drawing neat lines between styles or traditions. It is about taking inspiration from wherever it appears and reshaping it into something honest and alive. "If music touches my heart, it inspires me", she says. "So much music already exists, but what we are doing is creating something new out of inspiration. You take the ingredients and make a new thing".
That philosophy runs through 'Hearts Forever'. The album travels effortlessly between Middle Eastern melody, desert rock, Ethiopian modes, Afrobeat, funk, soul, jazz and psychedelia, never treating influences as destinations but as starting points for something entirely its own. Instead, the songs emerge as emotional landscapes, each growing from a melodic idea. "A melody comes into my heart or mind and I try to dig deeper into it", Tal explains. "I give attention to the ideas that come".
That growing confidence also shaped the making of the album itself. After years of doubting whether she was ready to take full creative control, 'Hearts Forever' became the first Sandman Project record entirely composed, arranged and produced by Tal herself, with long-time collaborator Tomer Baruch returning as mixing engineer.
A mere 7 tracks but we're so lucky to have such a 7 - each track sounding better than the last. And wait 'til you hear the jazz-funk fusion of 'Kishuf' - this album will stay in your heart forever!
BUY LINK / PRE-ORDER: Hearts Forever | Sandman Project
Artist: Sandman Project
Title: Hearts Forever
Release date: 23rd October, 2026
Label: Batov Records
Catalog Number: TBC
Format: LP / Digital
