Jay Malinowski never expected Sounding a Mosaic to have this kind of staying power. Two decades after its release, Bedouin Soundclash‘s breakthrough album continues to resonate, leading to a celebratory tour that brings the band back to where it all started: Montreal.
“That is correct,” Malinowski confirms. “The album that changed our lives, but also was recorded in Montreal on Rachel and Saint-Laurent back in 2003 with Darryl Jenifer of Bad Brains.”
For many Canadian musicians of that era, Montreal was a creative hub. “Yeah, we were like kind of a Montreal band. Like we were not yet in Toronto because we were in between in Kingston.”
The nostalgia is understandable. In 2025, music has become increasingly transient, with top songs from a few years ago quickly fading from collective memory. But Sounding a Mosaic still holds a place in people’s hearts. I ask Jay what it feels like to have an album that endures like that.
“Well, I mean, we were really overwhelmed by it. We definitely didn’t think that that was what we were doing at the time. I mean, we believed fully in what we were doing, but grateful that it still resonates,” Malinowski reflects. “And I think that the reason maybe at the time I was saying that with our band, we were never part of a scene.”
That outsider status may have been an asset. “I was talking to a guy in a well-known indie band and he’s like, ‘I just didn’t know where you guys came from.’ You know, there was at the time Broken Social Scene, Arcade Fire, The Stills, The Dears, or it was like on rock radio with When the Night Feels My Song, it was one of the most played songs that summer in 2005, 2006. It was Nickelback’s Photograph, Green Day’s American Idiot… big rock band albums.”
“It was hard for us because we didn’t really have a scene, and we always lamented like, ‘Oh, wouldn’t it be great if we weren’t just this island of one?'” he continues. “But I think in hindsight, because we didn’t really have a scene, people came to us on their own terms. And I think that’s why there’s been some longevity with our band. It wasn’t marked in a time or a trend or anything like that.”
Recently, the band re-released When the Night Feels My Song with different artists, breathing new life into the song. “That was great. We decided, you know, every artist that we chose for that had either covered When the Night before or plays it at their show. We wanted to kind of pay homage to the roots of our inspiration. So we had Frank Turner do a version, and Frank kind of represented that like Billy Bragg, English punk ethic that has informed our music. We had The Interrupters with that LA, SoCal vibe do a version.”
The Interrupters, in particular, had a deep connection with the track. “They play When the Night every night at their show when they finish. And then we had Jesse Royal from Jamaica, who we love and had covered the song back in 2015.”
What stood out about these reinterpretations was how the artists stayed true to the song’s essence. “Yeah. Well, you know, and probably because it was a collaboration with us. We were like, ‘Hey, we’re playing on these tracks with you guys and trying to make something that reflects all of us.'”
Despite their Kingston origins, Malinowski clarifies that the band wasn’t truly from Kingston. “People say we’re from Kingston. We’re not. I grew up in Vancouver, Eon grew up in Toronto. Pat actually was the only person from Kingston. But we all just were there for school. We’re kind of transients. The band could have been in Montreal. It could have been in Toronto. It could have been London, Ontario.”
Montreal, however, played a crucial role in their early success. “Strangely enough, it was Montreal that really accepted us first. Matt Collier at Stomp Records was the first person who heard the record and was like, ‘Would you guys like us to put the record out?’ And they were the first people to give us a chance because no one else was like, ‘Hey, some like kind of world fusion, reggae punk, ska… do you guys want a record deal?’ No one was asking. So big up to Matt Collier because, like I say this all the time, he was the first sort of industry person who gave us a chance.”
That connection to Montreal remained strong over the years. “We have a real connection with that city. I was born in Montreal. I love the city. We always seem to end up working with a whole crew that’s French Canadian.”
With such a broad mix of influences, their name itself often sparked curiosity. Listening to the band’s music, there are so many influences. I hear the root ska, the reggae, the blues, the jazz. But the one I never saw was like Arab music or Bedouin.
“Let me explain that,” Malinowski responds. “When we started playing, we had a show that night and I said, ‘Oh, man, this sounds like Bedouin Sound Clash,’ which is a dub record by an Israeli artist named Raz Mesinai. He put this record out in ’97—pretty underground release on ROIR Records in New York. It incorporated Bedouin instrumentation, but it was a dub record. So I was like, ‘Oh, this kind of sounds like Bedouin Sound Clash.'”
The name stuck, even if it sometimes caused confusion. “We had a show that night, we played, everyone decided that that was our name. And if I was to do it again, I absolutely love the cadence of that name and the rhythm of it and everything. If I was to do it again, I might try to make a name that wouldn’t confuse people so much. But you know what? That’s part of our music, I guess.”
Looking ahead to the Montreal show on March 26, fans can expect more than just nostalgia. “Yeah, we’ll be playing the album more or less front to back, but also we’ll be playing all the other songs as well.”
For those who haven’t experienced Bedouin Soundclash live, Malinowski captures the essence perfectly. “That is what our shows are about—people coming and singing. It’s what it’s about.”
For a band that once felt like an island of one, their audience has become their scene. And two decades later, that connection remains as strong as ever.
Catch Bedouin Soundclash live in Montreal on March 26 at Studio TD
Watch the full interview below:
