Syed was a reporter for TIME, based in the London bureau. In London’s Jazz Cafe, the sound of Egyptian legend Umm Kulthum’s song Alf Leila Wleila is reverberating around an atmosphere of anticipation.

With a focus on music from the Middle East and North Africa, Habibi Funk co-founder and curator Jannis Stürtz and his team have been reissuing some of the most unexpected and exciting releases of the ...