Rubi Ate the Fig’s Desert Electric | Progressive Rock Central.com

2025 has been a great year of discovery for new independent artists in both the metal and progressive rock genres. That discovery continues, even now, into the autumn of the year. I just recently discovered the band, Rubi Ate the Fig, and their latest album, Desert Electric: which was released on September 22, of this year on Ultra Marine Records.

After finding my dream band Part of the Theory, with their Middle Eastern sound, I thought I would need to wait until their full album came out to hear more of this wonderful and mysterious music. I have been requesting for many years, of many bands, to play more of this “Kashmir”- like music, with few positive responses. Finally, Part of the Theory and Rbi Ate the Fig have produced wonderful, dynamic, music that makes you want to play it over and over. Yes, I was a Led Zeppelin, “Kashmir,” fan, but there has been so many great Middle Eastern sounding songs since then, and even before that song became famous. Well, the wait is finally over.

Rubi Ate The Fig, is a U.S.-based band that formed around 2016. They have been known for their Middle Eastern -influenced music, with their album Desert Electric being a reconstructed version of a 2022 release that was recorded in Pasadena, California. The band’s leader, Sharoón Eliashar, was born in Jerusalem and grew up in the low desert of California, drawing inspiration from her upbringing and time with the Bedouins of the Sinai Desert, for the band’s sound and lyrics.

Sharoón Eliashar, is the lead singer, guitarist, and inspiration for Rubi Ate the Fig. She describes her sound as: “Led Zeppelin and Mahavishnu travelling through the desert, stopping to have tea with Grace Slick.” I accept that description. Yes, Sharoón Eliashar absolutely sounds like Grace Slick in Grace’s calmer, less wild moods. I would describe her music as a great mix between Led Zeppelin, Part of the Theory, and a band that many people have seem to have forgotten; The Tea Party from Canada. When I first heard “Breathe With Me Slowly,” it took me right back to Tea Party’s, Alhambra EP. One other comparison; The Mission, from the UK, have also created some Middle Eastern inspired songs which I will never forget. In fact, I am going to suggest to Sharoón that she investigate covering The Mission’s “Sticks and Stones,” and peruse the Tea Party’s, Alhambra EP, for some more covers, to fill up live shows in the future.

The Desert Electric was written and recorded in Pasadena, Los Angeles, before being reconstructed after the loss of the master tapes in a wildfire, in producer and engineer, Rich Mouser’s studio.

Sharoón Eliashar, is the lead singer and inspiration for Rubi Ate the Fig. However, to get the dynamic sound that this band delivers, they needed more musicians. The band includes members: guitarist and keyboards player Marc Mann, whose work with George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, ELO, Oingo Boingo and System of a Down are proof that his talent is in demand. Rich Mouser, a guitar player is the second guitarist in the band. (Two guitarists are always better than one, but three…well, look out!) Rich is a respected prog rock engineer who has worked with artists that include Tom Petty, Chris Cornell, Dream Theatre, Tears For Fears and Spock’s Beard. Ali Paris, who plays the quanun, (a Middle-Eastern 76-string zither), gives the band its soul. Polly Tapia Ferber, a hand percussionist majoring on the dumbeq, (a Persian drum), frame drum and riqq, (a type of tambourine), keeps the beat for the intricate sounds that this band produces. Miles Jay, is an experienced bassist, cellist, composer, and producer, who has worked around the world combining instruments from the Mediterranean, Middle East and East Africa, to create mysterious new sounds. Danny Montgomery, a drummer from San Francisco, who has recorded and performed with Percy Sledge, Ray Charles, Billy Paul, Mose Allison, Taj Mahal, Jack Sheldon, Johnette Napolitano, and Jerry Harrison, rounds out the band core for Rubi Ate the Fig.

This Desert Electric journey, across arid lands, begins with a deep breath. “Breathe With Me Slowly,” is the exotic, adventure, equivalent of Led Zeppelin’s famous “Kashmir.” The music video opens with Sharoón Eliashar walking across a desert dune, as she sings, “You see me see you, you want me, you know it’s just a game. I think you’re crazy, you’re crazy, and you think I’m insane. And at the Hafla, we’re dancing, we both fell into heart. I saw your bracelet, your anklet, your necklace fell apart.” A love song, or at least a song of seduction and chase towards the union of two souls. All, set near a tent in the desert. A dance of love fire, filled with Middle Eastern instruments and music. Sharoón Eliashar continues to entice, “It was the outside, the nightside, the branches of the moon. You taste my music, I play you, I’m taken in too soon. The earth is digging; she is waiting for a tree that wants to bloom. And in the river, a whisper, our strings will be in tune. All alone at last. Eyes touching eyes on the grass. Bathe me with palm oil, sapphire and ruby. Breathe with me slowly. I want the water, I want raining, I want mud and I want clay. The golden birds were entertaining when the sands rose up that day. I want the sand, I want the sky, I want your mouth when you want me. I want a tiny drop of amber to be placed behind my knee. I want the summer, I want burning, I want hot and I want heat. I want the wind when you are turning, I want amber at my feet. I want the rocks when they are resting, the blue of the sea. And ecstasy. All alone at last. Breathe with me slowly.” This is an incredible way to open any album. I think if you have listened this far you are hooked and must hear more. Over three minutes of primal pursuit ecstasy.

“Caress the Moon,” opens with more Middle Eastern guitar and soft, slow drums. Sharoón Eliashar sings, “From the ashes comes the flame. From the arrow comes the aim. From the echo comes your call. From your softness comes it all. From the desert comes the stream. From the vision comes the dream. From the cut comes the myrrh. From the blood comes the birds. Now will we say goodbye to heroes.” Another beautiful song, full of love and those Middle Eastern sounds that just fill the soundscape with pleasure. “Your kindness brings me peace.” A song for someone who has passed away. Sharoón continues singing, “While drinking tea, with roses and wine.” (Reminds me a little of Sting and the Police’s “Tea in the Sahara.”) Or could it have been Maureen Muldar, and her classic, “Midnight at the Oasis?” Go Google that one. Always loved that song, back in the ‘70s. Simply entrancing music, no matter who inspired it. The culture of the desert is one of calm and an embrace of every moment of time and Sharoón Eliashar’s lyrics and voice help you understand that feeling precisely.

“Flight,” opens with soft drums, bass, and Middle Eastern guitars, as Sharoón Eliashar sings, “I am fragile, Softly delicate. Open and kind. I am innocent. I am helpless. Can you hear my heart beat in time with you?” She is so deep and emotionally connected to the world and the humans she holds dear. She is very spiritually perceptive and in tune with feelings of all that is part of her world. The drums pick up pace and rhythm. They sound deeper and darker at times. “My heart awaits this wonder. The Earth will gift me to the sky. The dawn will sink my agony into rhapsody. And I will fly!” This feels like another song many people should remember. The Doors’ famous Apocalypse Now movie ending song, “The End.” Not as long and thankfully devoid of the mid-section poem, which I absolutely hate. But, quiet and calm and full of the dance of life. The idea of flight, also takes me back to the many fly-overs of the desert in the movie, The English Patient.

“Gilgamesh,” opens with soft drums, riqq, quanun, and dumbeq. “The Epic of Gilgamesh is, perhaps, the oldest written story on Earth. It comes to us from Ancient Sumeria.” But this is more of a love song set to a Tea Party, “The Bazaar,” like beat and sound. The themes are even similar. Though the pace and volume of the Tea Party’s song is louder. Both songs reflect the wonderful feeling of living in the deserts of Babylon and Sumeria. Sharoón Eliashar sings, “If you want to be in love with me, then follow sacredly.” A wonderful, deep feeling for the stories and the music she sings. This song also has a wonderful music video.

“In the Garden,” also has another wonderful desert music video. It sounds reminds me again, of The Tea Party’s Alhambra album. Sharoón Eliashar sings, “Your eyes are like a songbird. That sweetly sings to me. You touch me with whispers. And you surrender to me. My breasts are like a maiden’s. And my kiss is very new. We sleep in the garden. And I surrender to you.” Music full of love and feeling. It almost makes you want to hop aboard a plane and fly to the desert. If you were fortunate to have watched the movie The English Patient, you witnessed the alure of the desert in that movie. Sharoón Eliashar sings, “Like the sand to the dune. And the tree to the breeze. And the back of my neck when you kiss me so sweetly. Like the psalm to the muse. And the stream to the sea. And the mountains that crumble to our ecstasy. I bring you sweet water. You make for me some tea. We walk in the desert. And we surrender. So free.” There is a wonderful instrumental section in this song, which will carry you away, like a soft desert wind.

“The Tent,” opens with electric guitars and a heavier sound and feel. Sharoón Eliashar sings, “With my sword of steel, I come to you 900 strong. Hand held swords are no match for chariots of bronze. And the clouds arise, like my hand, on your shoulder. The Sand. They worship me, in my youth I spared no one. Exploding steel in flesh, my greatest pleasure has begun. And the rain falls, on the land. Like my raven hair in your hand. She gathers myrrh, spikenard, hyssop and sage. She gathers in, as the storm begins to rage. They slaughtered them, the blood spilled on the land. The might captain fled, leaving corpses in the sand. In the desert lies a Tent on a shoulder of Sand. She comes to you, white linen blouse barely sewn. She comforts you, as you are hunted by men of stone. If you pleasure me, I will let you in. She lay down with him and drove a stake right through his head. And the sands rose. And the sands fall down. And the sands rose. As the earth turns around.” An over 6-minute song of conquest, violence, and war, bringing back memories of another desert classic, Lawrence of Arabia. This song also has a wonderful instrumental section with harp-like sounds, guitar, drums, and strings. Absolutely dynamic and incredible.

When a song starts with the title, “They Came with Stones,” and you know the history of the Middle East, you know this one is gonna be full of action. And it is more of a rocker, with less of the Middle Eastern sound. Drums, guitar, bass, and Sharoón Eliashar singing. A powerful rocker that sounds heavier, until they unleash the Middle Eastern instruments. The Middle Eastern sounds take over the soundscape and all is well again.

“Tremor,” opens with slow guitar, soft drums, and Middle Eastern guitars. Sharoón Eliashar sings, “The silent wave breaks like boulders craving passage to the sea. Sing to me, with bells and sores on your feet. Dressed in white, while painting blue on me. Rest inside. Rest in me. The tremor will unveil you. Mystify and reveal. Explore you and exhale you. The silent wave sounds like lotus drinking dew in the moon. I feel the water but I can’t hear it. Pressed inside, we are flowers in a book. The tremor will elate you. Pressurize and release. Destroy you and create you. The tremor will remind you. Who you are, who is real. Inviting me inside you.” The horn – like instruments which play solos sound fantastic, and add to the power of this soundscape. The guitar solo reminds me a little of Jimmy Page from the Presence album. Maybe its “Achilles Last Stand,” or “Tea for One.”

“Your Story,” opens with a Police – like drum solo from Stewart Copeland. The bass and drums are wonderful at the opening of this epic closer. The sound reminds me a little of, “Can’t Stand Losing You,” or one of their earlier hits. A reggae/ska-like dance and rhythm song, filled with those Middle Eastern vibes. Sharoón Eliashar sings, “This is your story. You farmed too late in the year. No pride, no glory. I can’t stand to hear. That you are dying. That you’ve chosen fear. Your soul is crying; you don’t want me near. In this ride. I wait for your eyes and you to know. That I see your beauty shining high. And I love you so. Had you been thinking. When you went off to sea. Your ship is sinking. Don’t take me. My rope is airborne. You would do the same. But you won’t take it. And I won’t take the blame. In this ride. I wait for your eyes and you to know. That I see your beauty shining high. And I love you so. Waves of sound crash ashore. Spin me round through the door.” Just what the doctor ordered, reggae/ska mixed well with Middle Eastern instruments.

“Into Your Eyes,” was not included on my copy of the album, that Sharoón sent; but it is another great song that should have been included. In the accompanying music video, you get to see Sharoón Eliashar sing and play guitar. You also see the expert members of this band that she has assembled perform. The track is a fantastic song, full of energy, and a great beat. It is kinda like a Doors’ “LA Woman,” rocker. Not to be missed.

Yes, Rubi Ate the Fig’s Desert Electric, is exactly what prog and music in general, needs right now. Something to stir the pot and let us hear something different, dynamic, and engaging. This is everything you could possibly want in a new sound, coupled with great memories of the past. Sharoón Eliashar’s empathy and expression of feeling throughout this album is also what we all need right now throughout the world. The ability to engage with each other, one-on-one, with passion, empathy, and care, is what the world is crying out for, and needs immediately. We need to care again about our relationships with each other. Not just romantic relationships, although they are very important, but the way we talk and communicate with each other, around the world. This type of care and consideration would go a long way to stopping some of the world’s deadly conflicts. So, yes, take a pause from your classic sounding albums and put something new on your turntable, CD player, or stereo setup; and enjoy something different, special, and unique. Oh, and wow, did Sharoón Eliashar assemble one hell of a band! Every one of these players and musicians is a studio expert, and has delivered a sound which will put your mind deep in the Saraha, enjoying every minute of this enchanted soundscape. Ruby Ate the Fig’s Desert Electric, is a must purchase for 2025. I will be doing so, once the albums or CDs are available. I also look forward to talking with Sharoón Eliashar soon, in The Noble Shire for Progressive Discussion.