Baba Zula makes first Israel visit

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

Turkish band Baba Zula will visit Israel for a concert in November. The band will give concert in Tel Aviv’s Barby.

One of Turkey’s best-known alternative rock bands, Baba Zula, will play its first-ever concert in Israel at Tel Aviv’s Barby Club on Nov. 9, according to Haaretz.com.

Baba Zula was established in Istanbul in 1996 and came to prominence in 2005 in the documentary “Crossing the Bridge: The Sound of Istanbul.” The film, by German-Turkish director Fatih Akın, presented modern art and culture in Istanbul; the documentary’s first scenes featured the band.

Psychedelic band

Baba Zula merges psychedelic and Turkish folk music. The band’s rock is also influenced by reggae, dub, electronic music, ’60s rock as well as Gypsy and Turkish music.

The band uses a wide range of instruments including the saz (a Turkish stringed instrument similar to a bouzouki) and the darbuka, a goblet drum. Its shows often feature traditional costumes, belly dancers, painting, short theater pieces, video art and ritual ceremonies.

Baba Zula’s seventh album, “Gecekondu” – the Turkish term for neighborhoods built without permits – was released last year by German label Essay. Another of the label’s artists, Shantel, will appear at the Barby a day after Baba Zula. Shantel merges electronic and Gypsy music.