Review: Sandman Project - Hearts Forever (Batov Records)

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

Review: Sandman Project - Hamsa Remixes (Batov Records)

Lots of fantastic remix projects about at the moment and here's one not to be overlooked - especially when Batov Records have organised four different versions of 'Hamsa' by experts in their own fields as they take on the original track that's Mulatu Astatke of Ethiopia with a West African psychedelic rock vibe.

No. 1 for us is absolutely brilliant. This is usually the case with anything to do with Jessica Lauren and Emanative - typically in the Sun Ra meets Ethio Jazz.  We have to declare an interest as I've DJ'd with Emanative (aka Nick Woodmansey) way before the release of his critically acclaimed albums for Brownswood Recordings, Jazzman Records and Futuristica Music.  And he's not shy when it comes to remixes, (most recently, the far too short 'San Francisco Dance' for RE:WARM) and like any good DJ/producer/drummer/show-off he's reworked 'Hamsa' playing the drums himself and getting bests mate keyboard whiz Jessica Lauren to do a Farfisa solo plus Vince Vella adding an Afro-Latin kick, on congas, udu drums and other assorted percussion. 

Stunning I think you'll agree. But wait! What's this Ayala's Rhythm Mix?  Sticking to the theme but a bit more jazzy horn whilst the Koichi Sakai remix is Ethio with trumpet and housey keys that grooves then gets a little dubby sometimes and a little spacey too!  And not to be outdown in the spacey dubby groove, Italian DJ/Producer Woxow gets deeper into all aspects with some added spoken word 'thoughts'. 

Batov Records (they of Sababa 5 - see our review HERE) are getting in the party mood with this one and I'm expecting more of the same quality next year too!

Artist: Sandman Project

Title: Hamsa Remixes EP

Release date: 2nd December, 2022

Label: Batov Records

Catalog Number: TBC

Format: Digital