Ten of the greatest Israeli hits of the Noughties

As the review season hits overtime, here’s a little checklist that every music fan should be paying attention to: ten of the best tracks of the last decade (2000-2009) performed by Israeli artists. They might not be the biggest selling, and heck, not even the most critically acclaimed of the decade, but we feel these are ten tracks you should wrap your ears around if you’re in the least bit interested in knowing what makes Israel tick…

First up, we have Idan Raichal, who stormed onto the music scene in 2002 with a unique blend of African and Middle Eastern sounds. His live shows are widely acclaimed, as are his dreadlocks. Not exactly rocking my boat but his music has become the soundtrack of the decade for many…

Next up we have Alma Zohar, who has become one of Israel’s biggest female singer-songwriters the last few years. This song is my favorite of hers, the English parts probably helping win me over…

The Noughties wouldn’t be the Noughties without a story like this. Oren Lavie became a YouTube sensation in 2009 thanks to a very clever video and is now in line for a Grammy in 2010. Nice song, amazing video, we wish him luck!

The Banot Nechama hit the big time with their debut CD in 2007, after building a cult following thanks to some amazing live shows. These three girls are very talented, and very vocally gifted. This is perhaps their biggest hit to date:

Next up is Izabo, a band I first saw live back in 2004 (they were the opening act for Rockfour). They were so great I went and bought their CD from the stand at the back of the club. A funky and quirky little band, not everyone’s cup of tea, but seriously underrated.

Mercedes Band, who can best be described as Funk-Rock, have been around for some years, performing live almost non-stop. There’s not a lot of info about them in English, but this track is from their second album and is a cracker.

One of Israel’s greatest exports this decade has been Infected Mushroom, one of the biggest trance acts in the world. But their placing in this list has to do with their collaboration with Israeli rocker Berry Sacharov. This song was originally released in the 90s but this Noughties remix stands out for me as one of the songs of the decade. Live it looks amazing (but wait until 2:15 before Berry makes his entrance)!

Ahh Ninet Tayeb. Israel’s first winner of A Star is Born, she was an absolute sensation in the middle of the decade. She’s also been acting and starred in her first movie Kirot, which was release a month or so ago. This is from her second album released this year, which has been less favorably received, but I love this song.

The rising star of this decade and the one to rock into the next is surely Asaf Avidan, who we’ve already described as the future of Israeli rock and pop. Pure talent.

Last up, we have Eric Berman, another singer-songwriter who has hit it big over the last couple of years. Largely thanks to this song, “My Last Sweets”, with provocative lyrics that ruled Israel’s airwaves in 2006.