01 Intro
02 Move It
03 Blue Eyed Black Boy
04 Marcha de la Vida
05 Dancing With The Moon
06 Kabulectro
07 My Baby
08 Balcumbia
09 Look Them Act
10 Smatron
11 Lijepa Mare
12 Why
13 Buhala
14 War Again
Balkan Beat Box is an Israeli musical group founded by ex-Gogol Bordello member Tamir Muskat, Ori Kaplan of Firewater and Big Lazy, and Tomer Yosef (MC, vocals, perc, sampler unit). As a musical project they often cooperate with a host of other musicians both in the studio as well as live. Their current live crew consist of Tomer Yosef, Ben Hendler, Itamar Ziegler, Eyal Talmudi, Uri Kinrot, Jeremiah Lockwood, and Peter Hess. Amongst their other collaborators are Victoria Hanna, the Bulgarian Chicks, and gnawa player Hassan Ben Jaffar.
Co-founders Ori Kaplan and Tamir Muskat both met in Brooklyn, New York as teenagers. Both had grown up with music and Kaplan had been a klezmer clarinetist, while Muskat was a drummer in a punk band. They began playing together and had trouble finding a style that they felt represented themselves, so they decided to create one. They established their own unique sound by fusing the musical styles of Mediterranean and Balkan traditions with hip-hop and dancehall beats . The group was extremely influenced by Jamaican dub, another influence visible in their hybrid musical form. Balkan Beat Box’s goal was to take ancient and traditional musical traditions and fuse those with hip-hop in order to create a new mix of musical styles out of the traditional world music context that would appeal to listeners in a club or a dancehall. As children, they had felt that traditional music was outdated and felt as though it did not adequately reflect their experiences of the growing world culture, so hoped to bring new relevance to these old traditional musical forms. They also hoped to encourage and foster peace between citizens around the world by combining traditional music from various areas in the world, hoping that by doing this they can create peace, and believe in the elimination of political borders.
Balkan Beat Box’s first album (released in 2005) and their 2007 follow-up, entitled Nu Med, both received global acclaim. While their first, self-titled album focused more on Mediterranean sounds, their new album included Arabic and Spanish influences. The song Bulgarian Chicks off their first album has already become popular in clubs and dancehalls, proving that the music scene is ready to embrace diverse and hybrid musical forms.
As of December 2006, Tomer Yosef was considered a core member of the group and is now represented this way in the Balkan Beat Box logo and press photos.
They cite Boban Marković, Rachid Taha, Fanfare Ciocarlia, Manu Chao, and Charlie Parker amongst their musical influences.
Album review
Balkan Beat Box is out to prove why they’re one of the most dynamic acts on the planet with their third full-length album Blue Eyed Black Boy set to be released April 2010 on National Geographic Records in the US and Crammed Discs internationally. Infectiously danceable, uniquely innovative, and politically relevant, Blue Eyed Black Boy is BBB’s best album yet, expanding on their tradition of fusing disparate global elements to create a sound all their own.
When I interviewed drummer-producer-band founder Tamir Muskat in April 2009, he described how their upcoming album would be more personal, how they would express themselves politically and emotionally, something “they hadn’t done before.” True to his word, BBB takes an increasingly political stance in Blue Eyed Black Boy. Balkan Beat Box’s mission is to erase borders and build connections with their music, but never before have they made such outwardly political statements on their records. Songs like War Again, Look Them Act, and Why all speak out against war and institutions of power.
Horn player-co-founder Ori Kaplan, also told me about new rhythms and influences they were incorporating inspired by places in Latin America they’ve performed. Tracks like Balcumbia, Dancing With The Moon, and Marcha De La Vida affirm the exploration of Latin American rhythms and sounds to which Kaplan alluded, but Latin America isn’t the only place BBB has toured extensively that made an impression on them. Buhala features Moroccan musician Hassan Ben Jaffar, incorporating a Gnawan element into their already diverse presentation.
Part of the album was recorded in Belgrade, Serbia and features local musicians from renowned Roma orchestras. Tamir Muskat combines the traditional horns, accordion, and vocals with hard-hitting beats and bass lines to elevate the Balkan flavor to a new level, Balkan Beat Box’s signature sound. Tracks like Kabulectro Smartron and Lijepa Mare all feature ferociously intricate horn, accordian and vocal lines that mesh perfectly with Muskat’s punishing drum and bass lines.
Last but not least, several songs have an unmistakably bluesy, American feel. The album’s title track has some heavy blues guitar as well as Dancing With The Moon and My Baby. My favorite track on the album, Look Them Act, has a strong hip-hop vibe as well. It should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with BBB to see American music featured so prominently considering the group came to be in New York City. They’ve often ascribed the multitude of musical influences New York has to offer for the band’s creation and evolution; that evolution is extremely evident on this album.
Balkan Beat Box has already established a noteworthy reputation the world over with their first three albums for creating innovative, original music that combines elements from different parts of the globe. This album builds on that progress, elevating the global music scene to a new level. They are truly unique in their ability to make a powerful statement.
When I interviewed drummer-producer-band founder Tamir Muskat in April 2009, he described how their upcoming album would be more personal, how they would express themselves politically and emotionally, something “they hadn’t done before.” True to his word, BBB takes an increasingly political stance in Blue Eyed Black Boy. Balkan Beat Box’s mission is to erase borders and build connections with their music, but never before have they made such outwardly political statements on their records. Songs like War Again, Look Them Act, and Why all speak out against war and institutions of power.
Horn player-co-founder Ori Kaplan, also told me about new rhythms and influences they were incorporating inspired by places in Latin America they’ve performed. Tracks like Balcumbia, Dancing With The Moon, and Marcha De La Vida affirm the exploration of Latin American rhythms and sounds to which Kaplan alluded, but Latin America isn’t the only place BBB has toured extensively that made an impression on them. Buhala features Moroccan musician Hassan Ben Jaffar, incorporating a Gnawan element into their already diverse presentation.
Part of the album was recorded in Belgrade, Serbia and features local musicians from renowned Roma orchestras. Tamir Muskat combines the traditional horns, accordion, and vocals with hard-hitting beats and bass lines to elevate the Balkan flavor to a new level, Balkan Beat Box’s signature sound. Tracks like Kabulectro Smartron and Lijepa Mare all feature ferociously intricate horn, accordian and vocal lines that mesh perfectly with Muskat’s punishing drum and bass lines.
Last but not least, several songs have an unmistakably bluesy, American feel. The album’s title track has some heavy blues guitar as well as Dancing With The Moon and My Baby. My favorite track on the album, Look Them Act, has a strong hip-hop vibe as well. It should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with BBB to see American music featured so prominently considering the group came to be in New York City. They’ve often ascribed the multitude of musical influences New York has to offer for the band’s creation and evolution; that evolution is extremely evident on this album.
Balkan Beat Box has already established a noteworthy reputation the world over with their first three albums for creating innovative, original music that combines elements from different parts of the globe. This album builds on that progress, elevating the global music scene to a new level. They are truly unique in their ability to make a powerful statement.
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