golem w. rasputina @ music hall of williamsburg, 10/31/07

halloween with klezmer and victorian cello rock. ooh, spooky!

to tell you the truth (if the title didn't give it away), i was there for golem. it's no secret that i've been enjoying the excellent fresh off boat all year long, and their captivating live act is what turned me on to them in the first place. as i missed their last show in new york, in september, i was definitely not going to miss them here for halloween! golem waltzed onstage, proud members of the living dead, to what was a very disappointingly small crowd, which was destined to not grow much bigger. in april, golem was greeted with cheers and manic dancing, electrifying bowery ballroom with their trademark "eastern european folk punk," but they couldn't score the love in their own backyard. a shame that, because golem, despite their gaping wounds and bloodied faces, tore through their set with a furious energy.

golem opened with a song i didn't recognize, a disappointment that became a trend throughout the set. some were old, like the set closer from homesick songs, golem's second album, and some were new, songs so fresh that they didn't have names, from golem's next release, with a hopeful 2008 release. fortunately, golem quickly segued into "warsaw is khelm," their ostensible single and most famous song. what makes "warsaw is khelm" really distinctive, beyond the fierce charm and dance-friendly upbeats, is that it is one of golem's only songs in english. golem virgins (of which there were plenty at the show) definitely needed golem's standard bilingual introduction, delivered by accordion/vocalist annette ezekiel and tambourine/vocalist/count dracula aaron diskin. ezekiel and diskin, speaking in short bursts, answered the unspoken question "what the hell were they speaking?" it isn't english; it isn't german; it isn't even hebrew - it's yiddish! golem's lingua franca originated in eastern europe, the language of displaced jews, who also gave the world the marvelous form of music known as klezmer, from which golem draws not a little inspiration.

the two previous times i've talked about golem, i've been seriously impressed by their lack of electric instruments - while no great shakes in the klezmer world, it is a novelty in indieland, and, from my perspective, a major force in shaping their sound. however, i'm not going to talk about that today (even i know when a dead horse has been flogged enough); the issue at hand is how skilled golem is at their respective instruments. this isn't really a surprise, considering how virtuosic fresh off boat was, but even that doesn't hold a candle to their live performance. trombonist curtis hasselbring and violinist alicia jo rabins soloed in nearly every song, their arms blurs as rabins' bow raced over strings or hasselbring punched the air (with his trombone) in exhilaration. bassist taylor bergren-chrismas and drummer tim monaghan also enjoyed their time in the (metaphorical) spotlight, especially on "charlatan-ka," which will henceforth be remembered as the song when all the lights went out, and stayed out. power failure? accident? who knows. golem played by the light of cell phones, and the song went on without a hitch.

showmanship and quality are often inversely related - the flashier a band less, the less they want you to concentrate on their sound. this is not always the case, of course, and golem handily juggles the two, sacrificing neither. i feel strongly that monaghan's face, gripped in wild-eyed delight and contorted into bizarre expressions signifying the raw excitement and intensity of golem live, could be their most valuable (or inadvertent) stage spectacle, but it is really just one piece of their performative charm. ezekiel and diskin share singing duties in well-practiced harmony, but diskin is golem's real eye candy. jumping and gesticulating wildly, in time to the music or not, diskin manages to catch eyes. aaron diskin performed one of the most outstanding feats of boozingi have ever seen - or would have, if there had been actual cognac in the bottle he downed during a particularly fierce drinking song. but his actual intoxication is beside the point; diskin's pantomime was the perfect accompaniment. how else can you perform a drinking song, other than with drinking? dressed as a convincing jewish dracula, diskin wore a black cloak with red lining and was presumably caked in talcum powder, which irregularly came off him is great dust clouds. for "bublichki," one of fresh off boat's finest songs, about, according to ezekiel, "an orphaned boy...with a fucked up family." oxymorons aside, "bublichki" was one of the set's best musical moments, though it's finest spectacle came during golem's sexy song, the name of which i actually don't know. i saw it in april as well, as song that sounds rude to my non-yiddish ears, and is probably even worse if you understand it. here, ezekiel and diskin's chemistry is perfected, mocking and passionate, lascivious and absolutely kosher.

golem are not merely an excellent studio band, proven beyond a shadow of a doubt with fresh off boat, but superb in concert, visually and aurally engaging, especially in white and black zombie makeup. yet the most important part of any great concert is the excitement of the fans, and golem's music couldn't coax them into dancing (or, possibly, comprehending its amazingness). there are several good reasons why no one danced, with complete ignorance probably at the top of the list. however, golem is staking their claim, playing impressive live shows and releasing solid albums, and i doubt many will remain ignorant for long.


so, rasputina? i never warmed to them, even after a friend made me listen to thanks for the ether, but i can't deny that i was intrigued to see what they were going to do for halloween. how do neo-victorians play dress-up? i was hoping they would all come onstage in modern attire (i would've laughed), but their costumes seemed only barely distinguishable from their standard ones. frontlady melora creager was dressed as a native american guide, complete with feathered headdress, though her outfit was somewhat incomplete and only made sense when she explained what they were all dressed as. fellow cellist sarah bowman was "edgar allan crow biotch," whatever that means, though drummer jonathon tebeest earns kudos as rasputina's best dressed member of the night. mostly naked from the waist up, tebeest was a very convincing "god of the deep sea cucumber," bedecked in shells and beads, and resplendent in a plastic crown and trident. rasputina's penchant for costuming was clearly in effect, though not quite as glamorously as i had expected it to be, especially on halloween.

i won't lie: i left before rasputina's set was over. i just couldn't get into their sound, which seemed more a muddle of cello and effects pedals than any semblance of songwriting. rasputina played at least three covers last night, opening their set with a version of "all tomorrow's parties" that didn't quite cut it. for me, it didn't get much better. rasputina attempted a cover of belle & sebastian's "fox in the snow," quite stripped down and spare, though creager was clearly straining a little too much to hit murdoch's high notes. they followed that with "wish you were here," greeted appreciatively by the crowd, but i'd heard enough. especially after golem's furious foot-stamping klezmer rawk, rasputina seemed a little weak - i wanted raucous, drunk dancing, but everyone seemed merely content to stand around and gape.

buy golem's fresh off boat here, and rasputina merchandise here.

golem - "bublichki"

who needs english? - golem

english is totally overrated. who gives a shit that over 600 million people speak it? it's totally unnecessary. who needs english? is yet another feature from the ever-fertile brain of mr. mammoth - a feature devoted to bands that do not perform in english. this includes artists who are not english speakers, sing in languages that are not english, or whose music is solely instrumental, and is not from an english-speaking heritage. who needs english? is not a feature about "world music" - personally, i really dislike the term, and think that's its far too overused/abused. who needs english? is a feature about bands i like that don't use english. end of story. on to golem.

the first time i heard of golem was when music. for-robots posted a list of their recommended mp3s from the sxsw 2007 lineup, which included "warsaw is khelm" by golem. i can't recall why i picked golem to download - maybe i liked the name, or i already knew they were opening for balkan beat box, and i wanted to get a flavor of their sound. either way, "warsaw is khelm" absolutely captivated me - honest to goodness klezmer, the kind that a christian who wished he had a jewish mother craves. and though "warsaw is khelm" is (mostly) in english, the fact that their songs are usually in yiddish, ladino, or other slavic tongues sweetens the pot (and guarantees them entry into the oh-so-scrupulously chosen "who needs english?" feature). you'll remember how taken i was with them after the bbb show, and i picked up a copy of their recent fresh off boat, afterwards. golem's website boasts that the album is "thirteen tracks in five languages," a serious feat for a sad uni-linguist like myself.

now for some background: golem is a blistering six-piece from brooklyn (where else?), who have the unique ability to boast that none of their instruments requires electricity. from frontwoman's annette ezekiel's accordion, to alicia jo rabins's violin, curtis hasselbring's trombone, taylor bergren-chrisman's standup bass, or frontman aaron diskin's tambourine/vodka drinking, golem can rock it anywhere (and they do). names like hasselbring or bergren-chrisman don't really instantly summon visions of shetls or yarmulkes, but their gentile heritage is no impediment to golem's pure and honest klezmer - they even have their own hora. watch out, though - this isn't your rabbi's klezmer.

fresh off boat is golem's fourth release and their third full-length, so they are no fly-by-night sensation. i have no had the pleasure of hearing any of their other releases (half of which are sold out, alas), but if they're anything like fresh off boat, they're fucking phenomenal. golem revitalizes what is already an active and exciting style of music, especially in songs like "bublichki," "the rent," or their ubiquitous hit, "warsaw is khelm." "bublichki" is my personal favorite for two reasons: first of all, it fucking rocks. rabins's bow races across the strings while hasselbring's trombone bleats behind it, a fierce chorus that alternates with a provocative and sensual increase in tempo, lead by diskin's rough and guttural yiddish verses. it is impossible not to have the rhythm get inside your body - "bublichki" was one of the crowd's dancingest songs in their set - no mean feat for a relatively unknown warmup band. my second favorite thing about "bublichki" is diskin's brief english interlude (i know, who needs it?, but at least i can get the jokes that way), where he laments the state of his family - his mother is a cleaning woman, his father a drunk, he sells bagels on cold street corners while his sister whores herself out nearby, though his little brother is probably the best off - "he picks the pockets of hipsters on the L train."

while golem's vigor and intensity in their songwriting is not constant, the high level of skill and ability is, and their multidimensionality is no small asset. every member of golem seems to be a fucking virtuoso, and it shows. the rhythms and melodies are complex and interwoven, often abruptly changing mid-song, but never faltering. golem plays dancing and drinking music, and the proper way to enjoy it is to do both.

they have a show in a few days in new york - an excellent lineup with the welsh sensations los campesinos!, deleon (who were the first opener at the bbb show) and nous non plus, and you can buy tickets here. i will obviously not be going, as i'm in scotland for the duration of the fringe festival, but you should.

golem - ">bublichki", "golem hora"

buy fresh off boat from the not-for-profit jdub records here.

balkan beat box is proof that god wants us to dance,

so we did. their sold-out bowery ballroom show on april 19 was a study in culture as well as in dance moves, only the second time i've ever been at a concert in new york where english is not the dominate language. it was really cool. the last time was when gotan project played summerstage 3 years back, and it was like entering a different city. i've always had a lot of euro-envy, and i felt really privileged to be in such a diverse crowd, even in new york. so when i heard more slavic and middle eastern tongues on delancey street last week, i knew the show was going to be great.

i hadn't really prepared much for the show, beyond my casual obsession with balkan beat box's self titled debut from 2005 (available on jdub records). wikipedia has very little info on bbb, and i really had no idea what to expect. an evolution of the gypsy punk of gogol bordello, balkan beat box has less of a punk aesthetic and is more focused on the native rhythms of eastern europe and the middle east. incorporating elements of gypsy melodies alongside traditional sephardic verses, in addition to myriad other influences, balkan beat box was a great album. i expected the same level of foot-stomping intensity, but i didn't have any clue as to the extent of their live show. even the 'vegan was reporting secondhand. a few videos are on youtube hint at how good bbb are live, but, to be honest, i didn't find time to watch them before the show, so i was a blank slate.

balkan beat box kicked off their current tour at new york's bowery ballroom last thursday. featuring labelmates golem and local sephardic rockers deleon, the show was simply incredible. i took a great video, but it's too big for youtube, and my html skills don't extend to embedding videos, alas. fortunately, my co-author, tearknee, put me on to this video, which i'm inserting at the end of this post.

deleon - these guys were really solid. we didn't know it yet, but their black and red color scheme was going to be par for the night. straight reppin from brooklyn (where else?), deleon opened their set with a sephardic prayer set to music, which set high expectations for the rest of it. singing in sephardi, english, and spanish, frontman dan saks also proved himself adept at both the guitar and banjo. as an extra-special-awesome bonus, deleon gave away free pins to the entire crowd. pretty effing sweet, deleon.

the influence traditional spanish music plays in deleon's sound is palpable, taking the fore in songs like "ochos kandelikas," driving the melody with hip-shaking rhythms underlying the sung language itself. deleon was definitely very enjoyable, the perfect opener for balkan beat box, and i would definitely go see them again. they're unsigned and don't have any songs for download, but you can hear four tracks at their myspace page.

golem - a lot of people i talk to say it's never worth coming early to shows for openers. golem's set at this show proved them all wrong. i first heard of golem when an mp3 of "warsaw is khelm" was distributed as part of the SXSW package. the song was really catchy, and i've posted it below, to urge you all to go out and support (yet another) brooklyn band. it, along with two other songs, can be heard at their myspace. i purchased a copy of their debut fresh off boat (released by jdub records) at this show, and haven't been able to stop listening to it.

golem sounds like the band you wished you could've gotten for your bar/bat mitzvah. golem does not play guitars. golem does not play piano. golem does not use instruments that necessarily require electricity. what golem does do, however, is seriously kick some ass.

fronted by a pantomiming drunk tambourine player named aaron dishkin and annette ezekiel, smart-assed accordion virtuoso, golem calls themselves a folk-punk band, but i'd say they sound more like klezmer-punk. and the punk is generously used there. the songs are sung in english, and, as they dramatically announced to the crowd when they took the stage, yiddish. golem's pride in their eastern-european heritage is something we can all appreciate, especially on songs like "bublichki," which opens with a standard klezmer introduction of a mess of drums and horns, before stopping and re-starting with slow vocals that rapidly accelerate so fast that you don't even realize you've stopped standing still and you're dancing madly. "bublichki," which is mostly sung in yiddish, earned a laugh from the audience on the english interlude where dishkin informs us of the problems of his family, namely that his little brother earns his living from robbing hipsters on the L train.


golem ended their superb set with an called dance (don't ask me which song it was to - i was too busy trying to step left and right at the correct time to listen), and the best part was that ms. ezekiel introduced the band and each member performed the dance in time, even the drummer. dishkin pantomimed drinking six glasses of vodka during one song and stumbled about on stage, and another song featured ezekiel and dishkin flirting with each other to much hilarity. even though i could maybe understand one out of every three or four songs, golem speaks the language perfectly...building on the crowd's excitement from deleon, golem managed to get the crowd dancing , language barrier or no language barrier, with very little work indeed. by the time they left the stage, to much applause, golem had done their job perfectly: bowery ballroom was wetting themselves with excitement for balkan beat box.

and no one went home disappointed. after setting up on stage, bbb disappeared, only to reappear, in masks and all, in the balcony. carrying their saxophones and with two shoulder rigs for drums, balkan beat box jammed their way down the stairs and through the crowd before ending up on stage, the excitement level so high you could actually taste it. balkan beat box is one of those special bands that began as a two-person project and has morphed into a six-person touring lineup. founded by ori kaplan (sax) and tamir muskat (drums and production), balkan beat box now includes peter hess (sax and clarinet), jeremiah lockwood (guitar), tomer yosef (vocals, samples, drums), and itamar zeigler (bass). together, these six men made more new yorkers dance than i've ever seen before.

most of the set was material from nu-med, which had come out two days previous. yosef rocked the mic the whole night, supplying lyrics everywhere they were needed and encouraging the crowd to dance harder. the only nu-med song i've heard is "digital monkey," featuring rhymes by saz, a palestinian MC who has joined balkan beat box, but it sounds good. highlights, for me, were songs from their self-titled debut, because i knew them already. "bulgarian chicks" really got the crowd going, and they jammed on it, really milking the song for all it was worth. balkan beat box takes pride in the fact that their music is hard to describe, blending gypsy, arabic, jewish, and eastern-european elements as they do, so i'm not even really going to try to tell you how amazing this show was - you really need to go experience it yourself. they have a slew of dates lined up, including one in both detroit and chicago, but most of their other gigs are on the other side of the atlantic. the video below gives you an idea of the energy, but it they are honestly one of the few bands whose live show is unmissable.




balkan beat box is currently rocking the east coast on a tour to support their recent nu-med, which came out on april 17. accompanied by labelmates golem, balkan beat box is shaking asses near you. you can buy nu-med on itunes, where it features "ramallah tel aviv," a bonus track, or directly from jdub.

"hermetico"