Get your Israeli ‘mojo’ working

August 14, 2009 - 12:36 PM by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: General, Music, Pop Culture, Profiles 

Asaf Avidan, right, and the Mojos - comin' at ya.

Asaf Avidan, right, and the Mojos - comin' at ya.

Despite a slew of Israeli musicians – like Idan Raichel, Shlomo Artzi or Ahinoam Nini – being able to fill auditoriums in North America and Europe with Jewish and expat Israeli fans, there haven’t been any who have achieved mainstream crossover success. The closest is probably Ofra Haza, who in the 1980s rode the world music wave to a modicum of international success.

All that could change with the signing this week by Sony Columbia of Asaf Avidan and the Mojos. Called by one critic ‘the lost love child of Dylan & Joplin,’ Avidan’s high-pitched, impassioned vocals, poetic lyrics, and raw blues and folk-based English-language rock & roll have made waves in the last couple years locally.

According to a press release issued by the band, Sony Columbia – the home of Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Leonard Cohen, among others – will distribute and promote the band’s records, including re-releasing their second album, 2008’s highly acclaimed The Reckoning.

Avidan, who was a successful animator in Tel Aviv after graudating from the Bezalel School of Design, is apparently aware that the label is a good fit for his indiosyncratic style

“Sony-Columbia’s legendary logo, which decorates albums by Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, and countless other music icons, will now accompany our music as well,” said Avidan in the release.
”This is a dream come true for five kids from Jerusalem who grew up with great faith and love for music, and it’s almost impossible to comprehend this honor. It’s so fulfilling to see that the hard work by the band and those around it has made the impact we we’re hoping for.
”It is important to emphasize that this is but another stepping-stone in the band’s ever-building path, we have a long way to go.”

Avidan spent four years as a child in Jamaica, where his parents, both Foreign Ministry officials, were stationed, a move which he told me last year had a profound impact.

“I heard reggae all around me. I can’t say that I was influenced by it or liked it at the time. But now if you asked me my top five artists now, Bob Marley would be one of them, but not because of reggae,” he said. “It was something I realized later. What I like about art in general, it doesn’t matter the medium or the genre, is feeling that honesty, that it’s something that coming from the depths of someone’s soul. It needs to be out there – for him, not for anybody else.”

Currently in Germany, Avidan and the Mojos have spent much of the last year building up a following throughout Europe with their English language high-energy amalgam of folk, blues and rock. Their next album is slated for release in the fall, and if things go according to plan, you’ll hear about it, even if you aren’t in Israel.

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Jerusalem via Los Angeles

December 10, 2008 - 8:54 AM by · 3 Comments
Filed under: Israeliness, Music, Pop Culture, Travel 

Even though I recently spent three weeks in Los Angeles on an arts journalism fellowship, I couldnt escape Israel, which followed me like a neon sign on my back.

Nah, I'd rather see High School Musical 3

Nah, I'd rather see High School Musical 3

* On my very first day, walking out of my Hollywood hotel toward the closest pharmacy to pick up some sundry items, I walked past the fabled Kodak Theater near the corner of Hollywood and Highland.

Starry eyed and smiling, I peered at the glass-covered poster advertising the upcoming attraction, expecting to find the Grammy/MTV/VMA/Peoples Choice or some kind of awards. But guess who the next performer was? Our own Shlomo Artzi.

* This being an arts fellowship, we were hobnobbing with, well, artistic types theater directors, choreographers, architects, musicians, etc. So, when I introduced myself – next my colleagues from the NY Times, The World, Studio 360 and the like -as being from Israel, I didnt get the stock response about terror and is it safe there and the conflict.

The former Yoram Cohen

The former Yoram Cohen

It was usually, Oh right, you have that popular transsexual singer there, Dana something. I made a point of informing them that not only do we have Dana International, but we have another up and coming transsexual singer, Aderet.

* On our personalized tour of the Los Angeles County Museum (LACMA) led by their chief curator, I noticed an eavesdropper hovering in the background, listening in. He seemed like a normal-looking fellow, probably interested in learning more about the art. When the director of LACMA came out to greet us, we did the introduction thing, and I identified my position and home country of Israel.

A few minutes later, the stranger sidled up to me, and in Hebrew whispers, Youre Israeli? Me too. My names David, Im a painter, he said, handing me his business card. If you have any time, call me and well have lunch. Well, alright, Dave.

What, Bibi's not running in this election?

What, Bibi's not running in this election?

* US election day was one of our days off. So I sauntered off with a colleague from the BBC to the nearest polling station to write a color story for my paper. Walking up to random voters in line, I identified myself as an Israeli journalist and asked them questions about their feelings and emotions on election day.

One after another, without prompting, voiced their support for Barack Obama and the change he represented. After all, this was Hollywood.

Undaunted, I kept on searching for a McCain supporter to provide some balance. I finally found the golden ticket when I reached a middle-aged, goateed man who responded to my introduction with a hearty Ma Nishma ( how you doin?). And naturally, I had found a staunch McCain man.

* At a fellowship buffet dinner with some top Angelenos in the artistic community and in city planning, we were hob nobbing and discussing our days visit to see the artistic projects being undertaken in Skid Row, the downtown LA area that thousands of homeless call home.

Dan, a top city official, was explaining how certain parts of the downtown area were being regentrified, and more affluent professionals were moving in. On his street, he said, was a truly international bunch who delved into all kinds of creative projects. There were graphic designers, Croatian choreographers, a couple of Chilean sculptors living next door, an Indian chef across the way, and at the end of the street lived a couple who used their house to shoot and produce adult films.
Theyre our neighborhood pornographers, he said. As a matter of fact, he added, looking my way, I think theyre Israeli.

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