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Dec. 16, 2005
They're hip and Jewish
New York bands keep spinning new hybrid tunes.
KATHARINE HAMER EDITOR
There are some songs you just can't get out of your head. For me,
that song right now is Matisyahu's "King Without a Crown."
It's had me hitting the repeat button on my car's CD player so many
times that even the dog is covering his ears.
It begins with a low keening sound, then the reggae beat kicks in,
followed by crispy guitar licks. It must be the only song that combines
the words "Mashiach" and "yo."
The track, from the album Live at Stubb's, follows on the
heels of Shake Off the Dust ... Arise, the first studio album from
Matisyahu (formerly Matthew Miller) whose meteoric rise kicked off
the success of the JDub label.
The New York-based nonprofit label, launched three years ago with
a mandate of fostering innovative Jewish music and cross-cultural
dialogue, now has a growing stable of artists who have collectively
reached the ears of more than 200,000 young Jews, according to JDub
founder Aaron Bisman.
"If we find, as we do now, that young Jews collect around and
build their identities out of modern Jewish culture, we need to
support its creation and dissemination," Bisman told the Independent.
Matisyahu has a new CD set for release next month, and JDub also
has plans for a second album from klezmer/hip-hop producer SoCalled,
who raps in Yiddish and plays a mean accordion. Bisman anticipates
another two to three CDs to emerge from the roster by next fall.
In the meantime, there are two offerings that would make perfect
Chanukah gifts for the music buffs on your list.
The eponymous CD from Balkan Beat Box melds the folk traditions
of the Middle East, Balkans and North Africa with electronica and
hip-hop. Standouts include "Bulgarian Chicks," rife with
clapping, ululating and a catchy Latin beat and "Adir Adirim,"
featuring Israeli singer Victoria Hannah, which mixes singing and
rapping with a steady bass line and bazooka-like guitar.
Other songs on the album suggest inner city living, the shuffling
guitar strings of Django Reinhardt and the funked-up rhythms of
Bootsy Collins.
Then there's the seasonally appropriate Hannukah Rocks by
the LeeVees, who are currently touring the United States
with the Barenaked Ladies and striking a rather similar chord to
the comedic Canadians.
As the album's press materials note, "'Dreidel, Spin, Spin,
Spin' is a fun little ditty, but let's face it, it doesn't exactly
rock and roll." So the LeeVees produced a full complement of
Chanukah titles. The pair insist that the concept is not obsessive
but "extremely focused."
The music on Hannukah Rocks shows influences ranging from
Don Ho to the Beach Boys to early punk, and features laugh-out-loud
lyrics in songs like "Latke Clan," "How Do You Spell
Channukkahh?," "At the Timeshare" (in which Schneider's
mom has a guest vocal spot) and "Jewish Girls (at the Matzoh
Ball)": "On Friday, my friend dragged me to a Jewish singles
event. I told him there were better ways my time could be spent."
So go ahead, keep your grandkids happy this holiday.
"Hipness is irrelevant," said Bisman. "What is important
is that the established Jewish community support the organic developments
of young Jewish life and culture."
To find out more about JDub albums, visit www.jdubrecords.org.
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