Apart from the mighty Asaf Avidan and the quirky and fun Balkan Beatbox, there aren’t many Israeli bands that have had me tapping my feet (or other bits) and pressing that Rewind/Repeat button. But a listen to the new album from Eatliz, the six-piece from Tel Aviv fronted by the gorgeous Lee Triffon, has turned me into a bit of an instant groupie…
I’d heard of them previously but was unaware Eatliz have been around for what seems like ages, since 2002. And also unaware they perform in English only, bless ’em.
Amazing animated videos and great indie tunes have helped build a big fan base over the years, especially in South America and Europe. And now that fan base looks to expand even further as they head out to the United States and Canada in an upcoming tour there. Promoting their new album Teasing Nature, Eatliz will be showcasing at SXSW and the Canadian Music Week festival.
Their videos (especially “Attractive” and “Hey”) are awesome pieces of work and have helped them win some 16 awards (including the prestigious Spike Lee award at Tribeca film festival (NY)). Check out “Hey” below and tell me this isn’t a humdinger of a clip…
And what about the music?
Well, the new album is great.
It took me a couple of listens to really get a feel for the music, from the great opening track “Your House” (slight tip of the hat to Portishead) to the closing “Mystical Lady”. But one song struck me as a winner from the very first listen, and that was “Got It”. If this song (see the clip below) doesn’t break them into the big time, then frankly the world ain’t right.
There’s a bit of everything in there, with some definite hints of Portishead and Kate Bush vocals (I’m trying to put my finger on another voice I keep getting reminded of, but can’t…), with plenty of loud indie guitars and of course, plenty of fun, catchy tunes. There are a couple of throwaway tracks, but the other 10 tracks are well worth a press or 5 on the old Repeat button.
So if you’re looking for some Israeli music to keep your iPod / MP3 player busy, and you like your indie/indie-pop tunes, this is going to be a great addition to your collection. Definitely on a par with Asaf and the Beatbox boys.
If you want to catch them live in Israel, you can catch them this Saturday night (Haifa, at the Beat club) and then in Akko, Kfar Saba, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Modi’in before they head off to the States. And if you want to check them out online, you can find them here:
www.eatliz.com
myspace.com/eatliz
Facebook.com/Eatlizmusic
I really think the future is very bright for these guys. So bright they’ve been adopted as the igoogledisrael house band!